Shattered Rose
by KatsuraL
Summary: Draco is faced with a decision to either rescue a family, or become the cause of their death. What will this broken soul choose? Not a couple, more of a brother/sister relationship, DracoXOC
1. Chapter 1

Minute beads of cold sweat ran down Draco's pale face as he heard footsteps coming from around the trees. He had been paired up with Bellatrix, capturing useless muggles for his master's enjoyment. He did not want to do this, but didn't dare complain to anyone.

"Well, hello," said Bellatrix, her black hair blowing in the slight breeze. A family of three stopped as they saw their path blocked by two strangely dressed people.

Bellatrix was wearing her usual black dress, completed with her long black gloves and matching stilettos. Her already dark eyelids were lined with mascara and her high cheekbones were quite noticeable through her skin.

Draco on the other hand, was wearing his dark black suit that he had grown quite accustomed to lately. It was very thick, and surely looked out of place on a hot summer's day. The bay, only half-a-mile or so down the trail, was visible from where the were perched on the cliff and sparkled brilliantly against the blue sky.

"Hello," said the only man in the group. He was obviously the father or played a father-like role in the family of three. He was wearing a football cap and T-shirt, obviously supporting the Steelers. His chin was ill-shaven and had sullen looking eyes. The guy was also much wider than Draco, which wasn't really a hard thing to accomplish since Draco had become a Death Eater.

"Lovely day for a walk isn't it," said Bellatrix, placing one hand on the surrounding chain-link fence that was made to keep people from wandering off the trail. Draco was standing behind her a few feet, not really wanting to participate in this sort of activity.

"Yeah. We were just taking a hike down to the bay," stated the man, attempting to go around Bellatrix. She quickly blocked his way once again and smiled innocently.

"I'm sorry, let us introduce ourselves," she said, blocking the trail with her arms as casually as she could, "I'm Bellatrix. Bella for short. And this is Draco." Draco barely glanced up from where he was when he was mentioned, trying with great difficulty to distract himself from the unlucky family.

"It's nice to meet you, but we really should be on our way," said the man, attempting to go through Bella's arm. She quickly moved her body over and he stopped, biting his lip in frustration.

"Do you at least want to tell me your names?" she asked, a smile still placed on her lips.

"I'm Harry," he explained matter-of-factly. Draco and Bellatrix seemed to find his name amusing, considering that was the name of the boy-who-lived, but soon conquered that feeling as he continued.

"This is my girlfriend, Malinda and her daughter Lindsey." Draco glanced up for the second time to see a woman, around her mid-thirties, staring back at him. She didn't appear to have any spectacular beauty, maybe due to her pre-maturing wrinkles. Maroon lipstick rested on her lips and her eyes were coated with eyeliner that most-likely wasn't even necessary. Her frisky brunette hair flung around, clearly lacking the proper nutrients. Following behind by a few steps was what Draco presumed to be Lindsey. She was watching him, her face expressionless. The girl's honey-blond hair was well cared for, if not a little frizzy at the ends. Her eyes were small, but she had used a light eyeliner to make them appear normal.

Draco looked back down at the ground, leaning against the fence, trying not to imagine what was going to happen to them when they were turned in to Lord Voldemort.

"Excuse us please," said Harry, grabbing his girlfriend's hand. Her eyebrows were scrunched together, causing her faded wrinkles to bunch up on her forehead.

"Actually…I'd rather not," said Bellatrix, letting her mini-façade wash away, "Now you can either go with us willingly, or unwillingly. How's it gonna be?" At the end of the sentence, she crossed her arms, leaving the wand that had gone unnoticed in her right hand reach her lips mockingly.

Harry bounded forward, attempting pathetically to knock Bellatrix over so they could escape. Bellatrix flicked her wand lazily and Harry was shot backwards two feet, falling at Lindsey's foot. Amazingly enough, she seemed unfazed by this whole encounter, other than a hint of shock in her eyes.

"Hard way, I take it?" said Bellatrix, putting on another evil grin, "Very well then. Draco, take the little one, I'll handle these two."

With this being said, Bellatrix walked over to where Harry was and flicked her wand yet again. A thick rope was tied around his wrists and the ends were hanging mid-air, a few inches from the tip of Bellatrix' wand.

Draco hastily strode over to Lindsey and manually tied an appearing rope to her wrists, not feeling up to using a lot of magic at the moment. Malinda's hands were beginning to shake, clearly confused as to what was going on.

"Come on," ordered Draco through gritted teeth, pushing Lindsey so that she was right behind Bellatrix. Harry was trying to get through the rope, moving his hands around every which way and that, but every attempt only resolved into the rope becoming tighter and tighter.

Salty tears were scattering throughout Malinda's face, causing her eyeliner to run down her cheek. She only tried to escape a few times, weakly at that, before giving up completely.

About half-way to Lord Voldemort's hideout, Harry attempted to escape once again and chucked himself forward wildly. Bellatrix glared at him, obviously annoyed by the difficulty he was causing.

"You're going to end up dead before you even get to the Dark Lord," she said, her voice disapproving. Harry continued to struggle against the cursed ropes and the female Death Eater finally lost her patience.

"Avada Kedevra!" she shouted, a line of green smoke and light shooting from her wand into the man's heart. Lindsey and Draco looked away immediately, knowing that he was dead.

"Pathetic," muttered Bellatrix, extracting the rope back into her wand. Harry was now lying face-down on the dirt, his arms splayed outwards. As soon as Malinda had figured out what happened, she started sobbing desperately. Bellatrix didn't show any tolerance for her whining and started thrusting her forward towards headquarters.

Draco hesitated, his eyes resting on the dead man who had been struggling to save his family moments earlier.

"Draco!" cried Bellatrix, not bothering to glance behind her. Draco didn't waste another moment, and pushed Lindsey forward again, taking his mind away from the dead body that lay behind him.

Eventually, they arrived in the middle of a thicket of trees and ferns, a heavy fog-like thickness hanging in the air around them.

"Wait here with them," said Bellatrix, shoving Malinda's rope into Draco's hands. Malinda fell down to her knees and sobbed, causing Draco to stumble forward. He tugged at the rope once, but stopped after seeing the woman's sulking face.

Draco didn't want them to suffer, but he also didn't want to be put in their place either. He glanced over at Lindsey, who still had not said or done anything during the entire ordeal.

She wasn't looking at Draco, and he took that as a sign that she was silently crying to herself.

"Draco," Lindsey said after a long silence. Her voice wasn't shaky or high-pitched like Draco had expected it to be. The only emotion Draco could detect from her was concern, which seemed to be directed at him. She continued after Draco didn't respond.

"You don't want to do this," she stated simply.

"Yeah, well, it doesn't matter what I want," he replied through his teeth, looking away from her even though her face wasn't visible.

"Does it?" she blond-haired girl asked, glancing at him from the corner of her eye, turning her head to him ever-so-slightly.

"I can't help you," said Draco, not answering her question. He hadn't been fairing well emotionally since this had all begun, and it was easy for him to breakdown.

"Can't you?" Lindsey asked, changing Draco's only statements into questions.

"He'll hurt me. He'll kill me," said Draco, staring down at his fists. Lindsey didn't have an immediate response to that.

"Not if you don't come back," said Lindsey, her voice much quieter than the last time she spoke.

"He'll catch up with me. He'll know," said Draco, becoming just a bit annoyed with the girl's not-so-desperate pleads to escape.

"Will he?" Lindsey said, resorting back to questions.

"Stop it!" shouted Draco, disturbing the eerie silence of the land. Some ways away, birds were heard cawing and flying away to new grounds where they hoped they could find peace and rest.

"I'm not doing anything Draco," said Lindsey calmly. Draco's fists were beginning to shake slightly, and Malinda looked up at him, sniffling to herself.

"He can hurt me. Even if I'm not here. I don't have a choice," he explained, leaning up against the tree, his head arched up towards the non-existent sky.

"The Dark Mark," said Lindsey, turning to face him. She hadn't been crying, as Draco had suspected, but her eyes were soft and concerned. Draco didn't say anything and without meaning to, started whimpering quietly, his eyes closed. Malinda's eyes were red and large as she watched Lindsey walk over to Draco.

"Draco," Lindsey said softly, a few inches from where Draco stood. He didn't seem to hear her, and if he had, ignored her, as tears slowly washed down his skeletal face.

"Draco, I'm sorry," she said, moving even closer to him. He didn't hear or feel her there, all he could feel was the pain and suffering that had been building up inside of him for so long. A few paces away, Malinda was hiccupping the rest of her cries as she watched helplessly.

Lindsey wasn't sure what to do, and pressed her arm against his. It was then that Draco realized Lindsey was next to him, and he gasped, trying to calm himself down from the fit he was having.

"I…stop…I don't need…" he managed to gasp before his voice failed him.

"Draco?" asked Lindsey, the concern in her voice outweighing any other feeling she gave away, "We don't have much time left if we're leaving."

Draco didn't respond to her, and continued gasping and crying, gradually sliding down the tree to the grass and dirt below.

"Draco, please," said Lindsey, kneeling down next to where he sat hopelessly against the narrow tree trunk.

"Go. Just go. Please. Now," he said as he dropped the ropes. Malinda stood up weakly, ready to flee, but Lindsey remained kneeled next to Draco, her hands still tied behind her back.

"If you stay, he'll hurt you," Lindsey reminded him. Draco opened his eyes to find Lindsey much closer to him then he was used to anyone being. He flinched and stood back up, leaning against the tree, his eyes stinging against the chill of the evening sky.

"It…it doesn't matter. Leave," he said, attempting to walk forward. Instead of actually taking a stride, he stumbled and swaggered, only staying upright because be fell backwards into the tree again.

"Draco, enough," said Lindsey, "Untie us now and come with us." Draco stared at her in shock, she hadn't been so demanding with any of her words before. After a few seconds of thoughtful consideration, he obediently untied the ropes from both Lindsey and Malinda. He was sickened to find both of their skin raw and red. Malinda's wrists had actually started bleeding from the tough rope.

"Come on," he said after he had thrown the ropes aside, his voice only slightly stronger than he felt, "We need to hurry." Lindsey helped Draco and her mom run towards the road; the safest place for them at the moment. They constantly had to stop, for Malinda and Draco were pretty much mindless puppets at this point. Both of them had suffered too much emotionally to have the strength to run at the speed they needed. Lindsey had also suffered, but was keeping her emotions hidden until they were safe somewhere else.

They had finally made it to the road when Draco suddenly fell down in agony. Lindsey quickly kneeled beside him, ready to help him get back up and continue their getaway. Draco had fallen right on the edge of the concrete and dirt, his knees surely bleeding.

"Draco?" called Lindsey, grabbing his arms. She tried helplessly to pull him off the ground, but his mark had started burning horribly. It felt as though he were put under a Cruciatus Curse, only it was muffled. Draco knew that the serpent was moving on his forearm, and knew they were about to be caught by knowing Death Eaters.

"Run!" he cried through the pain. Malinda began to follow his words and began to sprint into the road when she saw the same woman she had earlier. Bellatrix had caught them.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Were you trying to run from the Dark Lord?" asked Bellatrix, her voice displaying little of the humor it had earlier. She had her wand out, pointing directly at Malinda's heart. Lindsey slowly stood up, for once showing how terrified she truly was.

"Draco," called a voice even more frightening then Bellatrix', the Dark Lord was going to deal with this himself. Lord Voldemort slowly walked out from behind a tree, looking directly at Draco. His slit-like nostrils were flared and he was wearing a simple black robe; long, white finger slithering out from his sleeves.

Draco's eyes had widened, and despite the pain, he stood up with the others, extending his wand. His blond hair was messed up, nearly as much as Potter's was on a normal basis, and his perfectly blue eyes were petrified.

"Draco, you are not the most loyal here. I've known that for a while now. You are fearful. I will, however, give you another chance. For the Dark Lord is feeling oddly generous today. If you come back now, I shall not punish you for your wrong-doings," explained the Dark Lord, extending his wand so it was facing Draco. When Draco didn't respond, Lord Voldemort flicked his wand once, causing Draco to collapse in a painful heap.

"Draco!" screamed Lindsey, bending down once again to help Draco. This was, for sure, much worse than his Dark Mark. Every bone and every cell in his body was burning. Anything would have been better than this, Draco wished that Voldemort would just kill him already.

"Silence muggle," said Bellatrix, flicking her own wand at Lindsey, who avoided the attack only by jumping to her left, away from Draco.

"Now what do you say Draco?" asked Voldemort, amusement filling his cold eyes.

"I'll…I'll…" muttered Draco, gasping for air as the spell slowly wore off.

"Draco, don't!" cried Lindsey, crawling back over to where Draco was on the ground, "Please. It'll make everything worse. You don't want to do it."

These words filled Draco's mind, repeating over and over again. He really did want to help her, to help them escape, but it wasn't possible now. All three of them would die, or he could live on and watch as the others die, he knew what to do.

"Hold onto my arm," he whispered, barely audible to Lindsey. She didn't say anything and grabbed her mom's hand. Within a few seconds, she managed to get her mom's palm and her fingertips onto Draco's arm.

"Stop them!" shouted Bellatrix as soon as she figured out what they were doing. About three blasts of red light were showered around them, but they had already started moving. Draco was mentally exhausted, and could only muster an apparition to the nearby grocery store.

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**I really don't know where this came from, but I had a really strong urge to write it. My parental units actually drove me crazy cause I wouldn't leave the computer for three hours. XD Please review, it means a lot! If I get enough, I'll continue the next part! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

When all three of them had safely been transported, Draco let go of everything he saw and felt and fell to the ground in exhaustion. Malinda was leaning against a nearby truck for support, her hair tangled and her face streaked with watery eyeliner. The wrinkles in her face seemed even more pronounced than ever.

Lindsey steadied herself quickly, and ducked down next to Draco. Her hair was nearly as tangled as her mom's, but Lindsey's face remained the same, if just a little paler than before the attack.

She placed her hand on Draco's forehead, which was covered with little specks of dirt and pebbles. Carefully, she pulled him into a sitting-position and looked over at her suddenly quiet mom.

"Water, can you go get some water?" she asked. Malinda nodded and went inside the building. It was late, but luckily for them, the grocery store was open all hours, all week. Seeing her mom follow her orders, Lindsey felt as if she was suddenly a leader in this runaway group. All of this was beginning to take a toll on her, as her head started pounding mercilessly.

Draco had a lot worse than a headache. He felt as though he were going to die at any moment. Every thought that ran through his mind made his head hurt and every breath he took made his chest ache. It was as if he had just been crushed by a boulder, which to him sounded great at the moment. This wasn't even adding the pain in his left arm where he knew the snake was swirling around. Usually it only prickled, similar to having a billion flu shots. But now, it was pure torture. Every time a little tile on the snake moved, Draco felt as if a knife were cutting into his bare flesh.

As Malinda came back with half-a-dozen bottles, Draco whimpered again, his face strained. Lindsey took one of the bottles and hastily opened it, causing some of the water to spill over onto the hard cement below.

Quickly, Lindsey removed her fabric belt, folding it into a neat rectangle as she poured cold water onto it. Draco continued his muffled moaning as the cold fabric reached his forehead.

Within a few short moments, his mind went numb, and he felt as though he was feeling his pain from a distance. It wasn't an easy emotion to explain, and so he didn't try to think about what it was supposed to be called. It felt as though he was in a black room in some corner of his subconcious mind.

"Draco!" shouted a voice from somewhere within his subconscious. An image of fire leapt up into view along with a faded image of his father, Lucius Malfoy.

"Father," said Draco, his eyes fearful once again as he looked into the pale, cold eyes of his dad who he hadn't seen for a long time.

"You have disappointed me yet again Draco," he said, spinning slowly around in the already dark fire. His voice echoed throughout the blackness of Draco's mind. Lucius' long blond hair, so much like his own, was blowing around, blending into the burning blackness surrounding them.

"Sorry father," replied Draco, his voice the same childish tone it was his first year at Hogwarts.

"Why do you continue to disappoint me?" Lucius said. Draco gasped once before responding in a voice that sounded like an echo of his third-year voice.

"I'm sorry father, it won't happen again."

"I'd wish to know where I went wrong in raising you. You are an insult to the Malfoy name."

"Sorry father," Draco responded through gritted teeth, his voice the same as it was in the present time.

"Shhh," whispered Lindsey soothingly, holding the cloth to his forehead. Malinda was kneeling next to Draco, her face still blotchy. She had wiped the smudgy make-up from her face with a paper towel inside the store moments before.

"Sorr…fathe…" Draco murmured constantly, his voice always fading away. Malinda was now supporting him while Lindsey focused on his scrapes, wiping away the mud and dirt from his hands and applying a little bottle of antiseptic her mother had bought in the store.

"You should rest," muttered Lindsey to her mom, who did indeed look miraculously drained. Malinda didn't say anything, but made sure that Draco was capable of leaning against the car before curling up in a little ball.

"Draco!" shouted another voice in his mind. He turned his upper body around to find his white-blond haired mother staring back at him, her eyes extremely desperate and her cheeks watery with fresh tears.

"Mother," he said, beginning to run towards her. Instead of becoming closer, she became further and further away, slowly turning into nothing as Draco's echoed sobs filled his mind.

Lindsey had finished caring for Draco's scrapes and replaced the damp fabric back onto his pale forehead. Carefully, she curled up next to him, not wanting to wake her mom up.

Draco could feel himself falling, falling to nowhere and everywhere at once. The darkness surrounded him, faded stars mirroring his false hopes in the far away distance. Closer and closer, the ground appeared to be, but not once did he ever feel himself hit it.

Lindsey awoke from her very light sleep when she heard Draco whimpering and gasping at her side. She looked over, her face still a bit groggy from the lack of sleep.

"Draco?" she whispered, sitting up from where she was lying. The darkness was beginning to fade into a lighter navy color, and it had to be nearly morning by now.

Draco wasn't aware of where he was or who he was with; he only knew that he was in pain again, both emotionally and physically. He was barely able to breath, and gasped for the cold night air.

"Oh, Draco," said Lindsey sympathetically, placing one of her cold hands on the fabric that clung to Draco's skin where the Dark Mark resided. Immediately, his breathing slowed down, and his gasping became quieter as the pain squirmed away from the mark.

Lindsey let go of his arm, and his breathing instantly quickened to it's previous pace. Not sure what she was doing, Lindsey pulled Draco's black sleeve up and rest her hand on the mark, hoping that what she was doing was helping ease his pain a little.

Draco's body was very warm; little droplets of sweat trickling down his face. Lindsey's cool hand felt amazingly wonderful, for it eased the burning on his mark. Then again, it may have just been that her cold hand had numbed it; either way was fine with Draco. Desperately, he blinked his eyes open, despite the strong urge to go to sleep and never awake again.

"How are you feeling?" Lindsey asked, concern filling her teal eyes. Draco didn't respond, and looked up at the dark sky.

"How…long…sleeping?" he asked, short of breath. Lindsey gently placed her free hand on the fabric that was covering his forehead before replying.

"It's almost morning," she said awkwardly. This was the first time she looked truly uncomfortable, as far as Draco could perceive. As he looked down at her arm, which was reaching across him to the Dark Mark, he could see why.

Lindsey took her hand off of the mark and put it back in her lap when she caught Draco gazing. He flinched as the pain returned and closed his eyes instinctively.

"Please," he muttered. Lindsey promptly returned her hand back to his mark and he opened his eyes again, sighed, and gazed down at the slithering black serpent forever encrested on his arm.

"How are you doing that?" he asked still watching Lindsey's hand. Lindsey didn't respond, watching Draco's face. Dark circles were quite evident under his eyes, and his face was nothing but bones under pale, colorless skin.

Draco and Lindsey sat there in silence, not sure of what else they could say, until Malinda woke up, fresh streaks of tears flowing down her cheeks. Her eyes widened when she saw Lindsey and Draco staring back at her and turned on them, wiping away the tears in her dark, sulking eyes.

"We should go to your house," Draco murmured after a few minutes of utter silence. Lindsey and Malinda turned towards him, disbelief showing through their expressions.

"To grab your clothes and stuff," said Draco awkwardly, attempting to stand up. Lindsey carefully helped him up, making sure he wouldn't fall over before letting go of him. Draco's knees hurt mildly, and the palms of his hands were tender, but other than that, all the other pains had stopped, including the Dark Mark.

"We can eat there too," suggested Lindsey, smiling gently at Draco, who quickly looked away, feeling guilty about having a younger girl take so much care of him.

"No! I don't want to go back!" cried Malinda, her back still facing away from Draco and Lindsey. They exchanged a quick glance before replying.

"We just have to grab some clothes," Lindsey said, confusion evident in her voice.

"We can buy new clothes! I'm not going back!" said Malinda, her voice high-pitched and shaky, much how Draco had expected Lindsey's to be back in the forest.

"Only twenty minutes. No more," said Draco, beginning to feel sorry for her as he understood the pain of going back to the place where she had lived so happily before. Lindsey looked over to Draco, but didn't say anything as he walked over to Malinda and held out his arm.

"Come on," he said, trying to sound as convincing and casual as possible. Malinda gasped once, but placed her arm around his, and he turned to Lindsey, "Coming?" Lindsey gave him a half-hearted smile before placing hers next to her mother's.

Within a minute, all of them were being squeezed through an invisible tube. Black figures blurred by them as they hurled forward. Lindsey quickly told him where she lived, as they all swirled through the blinding lights. Draco wasn't sure how long he would hold up, and tried to get to Malinda and Lindsey's house as quickly as possible.

Draco had just enough strength left to get them there, and they all collapsed into a pile when they arrived in the living room.

Malinda was the first to stand up, her hair sticking up at very odd angles as she looked at Draco and Lindsey, still on the ground.

"I'm going to go…pack then," she said, looking up at the stairway. Lindsey slowly got up, and watched her mother's face.

"Go. It'll be fine. Just don't think about it," said Lindsey. Malinda let out a hasty little sigh before walking up the stairwell, tears already swelling in her eyes.

"Hungry?" Draco asked almost automatically, standing a few feet behind Lindsey. She turned to look at him, her voice wavering slightly, the first time since Draco had met her.

"No, you can go get something if you want," she said, looking away. Draco didn't say anything, but went to stand a little closer to her.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, not really showing any emotion in his tone. Draco wasn't one to give comfort to others if they cried, and tried to avoid it at all costs. Perhaps Lindsey knew this, which was why she hadn't been crying.

"It's not your fault. If anything, you're the one who saved us," said Lindsey, still looking away from Draco. She wasn't crying, and was actually wearing a small, feeble smile. Her hair was messed up, and looked like it could use a little vacation with Mr. Hairbrush.

"You should go pack," said Draco through his teeth, truthfully wishing nothing more than to be alone himself. Truthfully, he still felt like dying if it wasn't for helping Lindsey and Malinda trying to escape from the Dark Lord.

"I will, don't worry. But what are you going to do?" asked Lindsey, looking over at Draco. He didn't respond as he saw that she was smiling. Unsure of what she had meant by that, he just shrugged his shoulders.

"You should go wash up. You fell down a lot," said Lindsey, beginning to ascend the stairs before stopping on the third step, "At least one of us should look semi-normal."

Draco didn't respond, but followed her up the stairs, taking his valuable time.

"Don't pack too much," he muttered to Lindsey before entering the bathroom. After he closed the door, she laughed lightly and replied, "Don't worry, I won't." Malinda was in her room with the door shut, probably crying to herself about the loss of her boyfriend and packing what few objects she could find.

Draco had barely taken off his shirt and jacket when he heard a terrified scream coming from the other room. Without thinking, he burst out of the bathroom with his wand and ran into the room the scream had come from.

Lindsey was standing in the doorway, shaking, staring at something that must have been hanging from the ceiling. Draco went over to her, grabbing one of her wrists.

"Draco!" she said, obviously not expecting him to have been behind her. Her eyes were darker than before, and the circles under them made her seem even worse.

She gave him a shaky smile after observing his unclothed torso. Draco gave her a sheepish glare before looking up at where she was staring moments before.

Hanging from the ceiling, was a sight that would've frightened nearly anyone in their right mind. A long, thick rope was tied to a broken light bulb, and hanging from it, was a dark, feathery thing that appeared to be some sort of dark bird.

Draco moved Lindsey out of the way and slowly made his way towards the creature. At closer inspection, it appeared to be a black raven. The rope was criss-crossed across the bird's torso, tied into a quick knot at the back of it's neck.

Malinda gasped as she walked up behind Lindsey, her hands on her daughter's shoulders. Lindsey felt her mom's hands shake against her skin and didn't dare look up at her face.

Draco carefully made his way towards the surely dead bird, cautious to avoid crushing the glass below his feet further.

Underneath the bird on Lindsey's bed was a pool of fresh blood that was soaking into the sheets and mattress. Draco took one glance at it and gulped, trying not to notice various blood splatters around the room.

"Draco," Lindsey whispered, but it was too late. Draco had turned the bird around ninety degrees to find a large gash right across it's right chest and wing. Blood was dripping onto the carpet below, and as Draco reached up to the bird, his hands and wrist were speckled with the ruby-red liquid.

"Draco," repeated Lindsey, trying to get Draco away from the bird. He didn't pay any attention to her however, and gently stroked the bird's neck with the tips of his two fingers.

A loud, ear-splitting screech came from the beak of the raven. Draco stumbled backwards a few feet and Lindsey and Malinda had cowered back into the wall,covering their ears instinctively. Obviously, the bird was alive. Nobody moved as the raven's eyes buried into their minds. In no more then thirty seconds, the bird had closed it's eyes and had taken it's last breath.

"It' dead," said Lindsey after a long silence. Malinda was gaping at it, her eyes rounder than before and her eyebrows were scrunched up in thought. Carefully, Lindsey walked over to where Draco was leaning against the wall, his eyes terrified beyond understanding.

Draco couldn't control his actions as he fell to the ground, his knees level with his head. He put his hands up to his knees and let his head fall into them, gasping again for breath.

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**Alright, another chapter done. ^^ I am seriously addicted to writing this story, almost as if I'm possessed...0_0....Well, as I said before, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review!!! It means a lot, and I'll give you ice cream! ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

Again, the pain washed over Draco, consuming his every thought, nerve, and muscle. He was gasping for air, tears falling from his eyes and down to his lips. His mouth was open, trying hard to breath normally. He hated this, breaking down in front of others. Especially ones that so desperately needed him to stay strong. Absently, he felt Lindsey's hand on his arm, but couldn't try to do anything about it.

Images of the dead raven, it's pained eyes, kept racing through Draco's mind as he tried to regain control of himself. He knew they had to leave, but it was as if he were frozen to the floor.

"Draco…Draco…It'll be okay…" Lindsey murmured to Draco, who was still weeping quietly into his hands, "Draco, we need to leave. Now."

"How…we…we…don't have a….a car…" Draco stated, still gasping for breath.

"We'll take the bus, it'll work," she replied. Draco peered out from over his hands to see that Malinda had gone somewhere else. His eyes were red and puffy, his blond hair pushed above his forehead in his attempt to bury his face completely.

"She went to pack more clothes and get the bus schedule," Lindsey explained, her hand still on his arm. He had stopped crying, but he couldn't stop the painful sniffles and hiccups that followed.

When Draco had finally regained control over himself, he stood up and went into the bathroom to fetch his shirt without saying anything. Lindsey didn't try to stop him from shutting the bathroom door, and went downstairs to help her mom, purposely ignoring the dead bird hanging in her room.

Draco hastily threw his shirt back on, and looked at himself in the mirror. He looked even worse than he had feared he would. Dark circles outlined his red, puffy eyes, and his face was pale and blotched with red spots. Specks of pebbles, dirt, grass, and sand grains peppered his dirty hair. He placed both of his hands on the edge of the sink, staring at the horrifying image that mirrored him, unable to comprehend what he had done.

Draco finally broke out of his trance, turning the hot water on in the sink. He was staring at the mirror again, watching the sink slowly fill with warm water when it suddenly changed to a milky, blood-red color. Draco narrowed his eyes and peered into the sink. The red liquid was chalky and Draco could smell a copper-like scent fill the air around him.

He staggered backwards, staring at the pool of blood in front of him, appalled. After only a few seconds, he ran out of the bathroom and down the stairs, running right into Malinda in the process.

"What's wrong?" Lindsey asked, carrying a backpack on her back, obviously ready to leave this place behind. Lindsey had managed to brush her hair down, but the dark circles were still noticeable under her eyes.

Malinda on the other hand had covered up her circles, and had reapplied most of the make-up she had been wearing, looking as good as when she left the last time she left the house.

"Nothing," Draco explained through his teeth, his voice frantic, "Let's just get out of here." Lindsey and Malinda didn't question him as he bolted through the screen door, not wanting anything to do with what they had earlier considered to be home.

Draco kept walking, his speed no where close to casual as he strode four steps ahead of Malinda and Lindsey.

"Draco, wait up," Lindsey said, jogging up to him. He didn't listen to her and straightened his tie uncomfortably. Lindsey made a little scathing noise before catching up to him again.

"You don't even know where your going!" stated Lindsey, raising her voice ever-so-slightly. This caused Draco to slow his speed to a more natural walk, but his face was still mortified.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Lindsey asked, her voice low and quiet so her mom, who was walking a few strides behind them, couldn't hear.

Draco didn't respond, and Lindsey took that answer as a no. Truth be told, Draco thought he was going crazy. All of this was surely taking a toll on his mind, and he probably just imagined the blood. Either way, he wasn't ready to share his experience with anyone yet.

"So where are we going?" Draco asked after a good ten minutes of walking. Lindsey shrugged, smiling sweetly.

"You were leading us," she said, her eyes hinting for a moment, her, perhaps usual, clever thought. Draco frowned, clenching his hands together.

"Now's not the time for a game," he snapped, in his old, Slytherin attitude. Rather than shun back into her shell like she would've usually done, Lindsey simply continued smiling.

"We can take the thirteen to Downtown. I was assuming that once we get down there we could rent a car."

Draco raised his eyebrows, clearly amused by the fact that Lindsey had thought all of this up in less than fifteen minutes. He thought that if she had gone to Hogwarts, she would've perhaps been in Ravenclaw. He did find one flaw in her plan however, and spoke in a low voice.

"It's a great plan and everything, but you know I don't know how to drive, right?"

"Define the definition of drive would you please?" Lindsey said, a charming smile spreading on her face.

"Drive as in…using a steering wheel and such in a car so you can go places," Draco said, feeling strangely clueless at whatever Lindsey was playing at. His response was worded quite humerously, and Lindsey laughed lightly.

"Exactly my point," Lindsey said, "If a normal teen can do it, why shouldn't a sixth year wizard not be able to?" Draco finally understood what she was trying to tell him.

"You want me to use magic?" he asked, his voice meek.

"Why not? You _are_ seventeen, right?"

"I…yeah…just last month," said Draco, looking down at the hard cement under his feet.

"Then there aren't any problems…right?"

"What about your mom?" Draco asked sheepishly. Lindsey shook her head.

"No. She's a bit…out of it. Don't tell me you haven't noticed." At this being said, they both glanced behind them towards where Malinda was standing, staring off into space as she continued walking forward like a mindless zombie.

"I'm not exactly…in the best condition either," Draco said anxiously.

"None of us are," Lindsey said, smiling at him weakly. Draco didn't notice anything extremely wrong with Lindsey, but didn't say anything to her about it.

"So, how far are we from the bus stop?" he asked.

"Another block I believe," answered Lindsey, almost immediately. Draco didn't say anything and continued walking, all of the recent activities flowing through his mind. Not only had he escaped from Lord Voldemort, but he managed to save two others. He wondered how long his luck could possibly last.

"Draco? Are you alright?" Lindsey asked, watching him stare out into street. They had arrived at the bus stop, and all three of them were sitting on a concrete wall. He nodded vaguely. Lindsey sighed and glanced over at her mom, who was also gazing at the road, her eyes unseeing.

"Are you two always gonna act like this?" Lindsey muttered. This caused Draco to snap out of his thinking and look down at her.

"I don't believe thinking is against the law," he said, once again letting his Slytherin mood show through the wall he built since he had become a Death Eater. Lindsey smiled at his rudeness, knowing that he was slowly becoming more of what he used to be before all of this had happened to him.

"Sorry sir, just thought it was a bit suspicious. Two people hopelessly gazing out into the street in the middle of the day, looking like they hadn't had much sleep, and one of which was wearing an extremely warm suit," she said happily before adding, "With a blood stain on the sleeve."

Draco looked down at his sleeve, which did indeed have a giant blotch of blood on it. He hastily rolled it up with trembling fingers, unsure whether the blood had come from the bird, or if it was from the sink and he wasn't crazy.

"You saw something," Lindsey murmured, causing Draco to jump.

"What makes you think that?" he asked, looking away, absently holding the blood-soaked sleeve in his hand.

"Where'd the blood come from?" inquired Lindsey curiously, "You didn't get that from the bird did you?"

"What's it matter to you?"

"Because you got that from _my _house," Lindsey said, her voice light, although she was frowning.

Draco didn't say anything as the bus pulled up to the curb. Malinda went in first, dropping the coins in the slot, followed soon after by Lindsey and Draco.

All three of them received numerous looks and double-takes, particularly Draco, as they took their seat in the back of the bus.

"A bit warm for a suit isn't it?" asked an old man as Draco walked by. The old man was wearing a plaid shirt and jeans, his hair short and white, and his glasses were scratched and dented.

Draco ignored him, and continued to the back of the bus, feeling as if he were a peasant.

"Great isn't it?" Lindsey said, clearly mocking Draco. She was wearing another one of her smiles that made Draco think that she was simply playing a game with him.

"No. You take the bus a lot?" he asked, showing little 'true' interest in her life. He folded his arms across his chest and looked out the window, pretending he wasn't in a city bus.

"Not anymore," said Lindsey, letting out a small laugh, "I used to take it every day after school before we moved." Draco didn't respond and she simply looked down at her hands, her face thoughtful.

"It's not healthy," she said after a long silence. Draco twitched his head ever-so-slightly to acknowledge he was listening.

"Not eating I mean." She wouldn't have normally brought up a subject like this in public, but everyone was busy in their own little world, so she figured it was safe to at least mention it.

"What do you mean?" asked Draco as his face turned paler than normal.

"You know what I mean," muttered Lindsey, looking away from him. Draco turned his head to her and glared.

"Enlighten me," he said, a harshness he usually only saved for Potter in his voice.

Lindsey didn't look back at him as she regained her confidence. She had pretty good tolerance for people's emotions, but if they started to get too angry, Lindsey could never continue with what she was saying without crying. A very miserable event to occur at a time like this.

"I know you haven't been eating lately. Probably not much at all since you've became a Death Eater."

"I don't believe that's any of your business," he snapped, his face becoming hot. Lindsey didn't say anything for a while.

"We need to get off at the next stop," she said, her voice quiet, shy even. Draco felt guilty about the way he spoke to her, but didn't think to apologize. He made a good point, it wasn't any of her business if he was eating or not.

Draco pulled the chord, like so many others before him, and started to stand up. Although Lindsey was the closest to the isle, Draco got out first, leaving Lindsey and Malinda behind.

Malinda remained at her slower pace, carrying the heaviest bag, while Lindsey quickly caught up with Draco.

"Now where do we go?" he asked her, crossing the street. Lindsey hurried behind him.

"Keep going. It'll be on the left," she said, nearly avoiding an oncoming car as it stopped abruptly, "And could you _please_ stop walking so fast!"

Draco sighed, slowing down as he reached another intersection. Lindsey was a step behind him, Malinda following a few yards behind her daughter.

All three of them crossed the road when the light turned a familiar red color, Draco crossing first, as usual.

"Spare money?" asked a man around his mid-forties. He was holding out a dirty, poorly used hat that held maybe a dollar in dimes and nickels. The group ignored him, continuing towards their destination.

"Please? I know you have some on you!" he cried, stepping in front of Draco. Draco felt his face get hot again, and his hands clenched into fists.

"We don't have anything to give you! Now fuck off!" he shouted, causing the man to jump and scurry off without another word.

Lindsey watched the scene from a few feet away, her mom standing beside her. Both of their eyes were on Draco, wondering what had caused his sudden outburst.

Lindsey was the first one to move, and simply placed her hand on his mark once more. Draco hadn't noticeably felt any pain from it, but immediately some of his frustration disappeared as her fingers lightly rested on the moving skull and snake.

Not wanting to linger on it anymore in public, Draco continued walking, Lindsey at his heels. Malinda was still farther behind than Lindsey, but she had managed to stay within a good yard of her only daughter.

"Here," Lindsey said, stopping in front of a mediocre car shop. The cars there were old, but surely with a bit of magic it wouldn't matter.

Draco continued walking towards the building without a second glance, Lindsey once again left to jog up to him.

"My mom's paying," Lindsey said, not looking at Draco's face which had become heart-breakingly pale. He continued inside, the bell on the door ringing as they all entered, one after the other.

"Ah, well, hello," said the secretary, glancing up from his papers, "How may I help you?"

"We…need to rent a car," said Draco, suddenly feeling guilty that he was too weak to just apparate the group to London.

"Ah, names?" asked the secretary, looking up at the odd people. He had messy red-brown hair, covered by the shop's uniform hat. Little spectacles rested on his nose, making his already big green eyes larger than they were.

"Malinda Kaler," said Malinda, stepping up to the desk. The secretary raised his eyebrows, but started asking Malinda some questions about policies and what-not.

"Hungry?" Lindsey asked Draco, not bothering to stick around for the answer. She walked over to a vending machine that resided in the corner of the little office. Draco followed, staying a few feet behind her, as she fed the machine seventy-five cents.

"What do you want?" Lindsey asked, taking a bag of Doritos from the box below. Draco didn't say anything; he was afraid that if he ate something he would be sick.

"I'm…not hungry," said Draco, guilt from their earlier conversation bubbling up inside of him. Lindsey could see that Draco's face had gone a bit green from the mention of food and decided it best not to push it right now.

Lindsey smiled weakly, shrugged, and went to go sit down at a nearby chair, trying to make Draco feel a little more comfortable. His face turned back to it's original pale white and he sat down next to her, staring at the opposite wall, thinking about what she had said earlier.

It was true, that Draco hadn't been eating as much. But was it enough to be considered, 'unhealthy'? The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. Food for him was like any other thing in his life except for the Dark Lord. He ate when he could, which was, if he was lucky, a piece of bread once a day. He knew it wasn't normal, but the word, 'unhealthy', didn't seem to fit it. Sure, he had lost all of the muscle he had acquired when he was starting Hogwarts, but wasn't that how things were? Was it really that noticeable that he hadn't been eating well?

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**Alright, please, please, please...I am begging you...review this is you've read it! ^^ I'll continue soon, promise! :P**


	4. Chapter 4

"Draco?" Lindsey asked, popping a Dorito in her mouth. Having his name called seemed to knock him out of his thoughts and he looked over at her.

"Sorry, you looked kinda sick," she said weakly, grabbing another Dorito from the bag, "You sure you don't want one?" Draco looked at the triangular chip, really not wanting to eat it, but suddenly subconscious about his eating habits.

"I…fine. Just one…" he said, taking one from the bag. Trying not to make a big deal about it, he ate it, purposely ignoring Lindsey's face which was probably covered with a smirk.

The Dorito tasted alright, until it went into his stomach. The moment it entered his stomach, he became nauseous. How long had it been since he had last eaten anything? A few days maybe?

"You didn't have to eat it if you didn't want to," Lindsey said, seeing Draco's sickly face. He didn't respond, and continued trying not to throw up then and there.

"We have the car," said Malinda, walking over with a pair of rusty old keys. She gave her daughter and Draco a weak smile, and started walking outside to the parking lot. Draco followed first, trying to act as normal as possible, and then Lindsey, eating yet another Dorito from the bag.

"I'll drive it for a while," said Malinda, assuming Draco's pale face represented anxiety. Draco nodded absently, glad he wouldn't have that pressure of keeping down a chip _and_ driving a car around.

The car they were given looked about five years old, and had a dent on the right passenger door. It was covered with black paint that had been worn off in some places, particularly the hood.

"It's all they had on such short notice," Malinda said quietly. Draco tried not to think about anything as he got into the passenger's side. Malinda got into the driver's seat, tossing her bag into the backseat. Lindsey, her face sulky, got into the back seat behind Draco, placing her bag next to her mom's.

Lindsey had never enjoyed being the youngest in any group of people, and having to sit in the back alone made her feel like a little kid again. Her blond hair was covering most of her face as she read the Dorito bag, clearly trying to get her mind off of the bigger issues.

Malinda started up the engine, tucking a wisp of brown hair behind her ear as she did so. The car sprang to life, and she began to backup so that she could get onto the road.

Draco looked out the window at the passing building, the pedestrians hurrying to their destinations. He felt oddly empty since they left the house, numb even. It's like someone had flipped the switch on all of his emotions. Anything he thought about had a blank feeling to it, as if everything was a as simple as a statement in a textbook.

"Do you want to take over up here?" Malinda asked after going over a bridge that crossed the bay they had went to go see the night before. Unlike yesterday, the water wasn't sparkling; clouds hung low over the sky above, making the water look murky and gray and everything around them have a dingy feel to it.

Draco hadn't heard Malinda speak, he was too caught up in his own thoughts. Still staring out the window, Draco went over all of the recent events in his mind once again.

Draco had left Lord Voldemort's feet, all because of what? Lindsey? Had Lindsey really been the only reason he had left? She had been, unnecessarily, comforting him ever since he had met her, trying to ease the pain she somehow knew was building up inside of him, shrinking the dark shadows in his heart and soul.

No, he had left because he wanted to. He was tired causing pain, and wanted to end the suffering he was forced to cause. That was why he had left. Then, why, did he suddenly feel as if he had to protect Lindsey so badly now? And why was it, that when her hand was on his mark, did all the pain seem to just disappear? He could almost feel Lindsey's hand now, her cold fingers on his arm, lightly brushing his mark through his rolled up sleeve.

"Draco?" Lindsey called. Draco jumped as he realized that Lindsey's hand actually _was_ on his arm, and turned around to see what she wanted.

His face turned a light shade of pink as he realized they had stopped the car in an abandoned parking lot, obviously waiting on him. Lindsey's face looked puzzled, her head tilted to the side. Malinda was just staring at him, her eyebrows doing the weird, worried look again.

"Sorry, what did you say?" he asked pathetically, looking away from their curious gazes.

"We asked if you wanted to take over now. We're out of town," Malinda repeated for him, causing parts of his face to pale again.

"Oh, yeah, sure," he stuttered, opening the passenger side door to get out. Malinda looked like a ghost as she opened hers, crunching on the gravel when her sneakers touched the ground. Lindsey followed shortly after, wondering what Draco was going to do. The parking lot was surrounded by a lot of pine trees, little pinecones littering the ground around them.

"Right," said Draco, feeling very uncomfortable in the spotlight. He looked at the car for a few seconds before taking out his wand. Feeling mildly foolish using magic in front of muggles, he muttered a disillusion charm.

The car looked like invisible paint was slowly spreading over it. The car first turned a white, milky color, then slowly faded into nothing, letting the trees from behind it show through. Draco smiled, glad the spell had done it's job properly. As long as no one stuck their arms out the window, they wouldn't be seen.

"Flying car?" Lindsey asked, sounding amused. Draco nodded, barely glancing at her, the conversation he had been having with himself earlier floating through his mind.

Lindsey didn't seem to mind his silence, and started eating another Dorito from the bag. Draco sighed, and took the charm off momentarily so that they could find their way back inside.

Carefully, they all got back in the car, Draco in the driver's seat this time. Malinda's face had gone slightly pale after seeing Draco use his magic for the first time since they had apparated to the house.

Lindsey once again felt like a child as she clambered into the back seat with her nearly-empty bag of Doritos.

Draco swished his wand again, muttering the charm, and the car rapidly disappeared. He took a shaky breath before casting a flying spell, made difficult from the heaviness of the car. All three of them slowly rose up into the air as Draco carefully made his way forwards, unsure how long he could keep the car up in the air. It was times like this he really wished he would've had a broomstick. Or that there was an American Knight Bus.

His thoughts were cut short as the car lowered several feet, and he hastily focused on keeping all three of them in the air.

"I think we should go to the airport. It would be easier than…uh…taking a flying car, all the way to London," Lindsey said, smiling at the end. Draco didn't say anything, but started flying a dozen feet or so above the highway, following the signs that directed him to the nearest airport.

Not more than ten minutes later, Malinda had started gasping, tears forming in her eyes, as she remembered her boyfriend Harry. Draco tried desperately to ignore her and focus on his flying, but had immense difficulty after all he had been through.

Lindsey had been right, it had been a better idea for Draco to get them to the airport. Malinda was a crying mess, gasping and sobbing against the cold window. Lindsey hadn't said anything, but had her hand on her mother's shoulder, obviously trying to help her mom get through the pain without letting her own escape.

Draco tried not to think about Lindsey, not wanting to remember how soothing it had been when she touched his arm; stopping his pain. She had a right to comfort her mother, her only family that Draco knew of, in her time of need. But he couldn't get rid of the jealousy that rested on his heart, the urge to have her sooth his misery too.

As the car continued moving closer and closer towards the airport, Malinda became quieter and quieter, her sobs and gasps shifting to miniature sniffles. Lindsey had went back to resting against the seat, her arms folded and her eyes closed. She had been managing to hide her sorrow so far, and she was struggling to continue when her mom had unexpectedly broken down again.

Draco caught her image in the rearview mirror, since the car was only invisible from the outside. He turned to her, allowing the car to drop a few feet in the process. Lindsey felt his gaze on her, and opened her eyes sheepishly, a feeble smile on her lips.

To someone who hadn't known the signs, she would have appeared nothing more than tired. But Draco knew better, having played that same trick himself. Although he absolutely hated other people crying, Draco couldn't just watch Lindsey suffer either. She had been the only one who had ever taken away his anguish in his life, and he wanted to somehow repay her for it.

Wanting her to know that he'll talk to her about this later, he shot her a knowing look. Lindsey frowned and looked away, trying not to pay any attention to Draco. He sighed silently to himself, and slowly lifted the car back up into the air. Malinda was still sniffling against the window, and hadn't noticed the silent conversation around her.

After they had finally arrived near the airport area, Draco asked Malinda, who had stopped grieving for the meantime, if they had made any arrangements for the airport yet. It was Lindsey who spoke up however.

"No, we haven't. We were truthfully trying to get out of the house. We could stay in a hotel and make arrangements tonight if you want," Lindsey suggested, exchanging a long look with Draco. He didn't say anything, and pulled into a nearby Motel 6, releasing his magic as the car returned back to normal.

Draco didn't realize how exhausted he was until he had stopped using his magic. Every muscle in his body ached and he felt, once again, the painful sear of the Dark Mark on his snowy white skin. Trying to ignore it, he got out of the car, grabbing the bags from the backseat, trying to do a favor for Lindsey and Malinda.

"I can carry my own stuff," Lindsey said, and without meaning to, grabbed Draco's arm where the Dark Mark resided. Relief washed through Draco's body almost instantly, and he froze.

Lindsey noted his reaction, and carefully took her bag in her free hand, making sure to leave the other one on his mark. "It's burning isn't it?"

Draco didn't respond, letting his breathing return to normal, as Malinda grabbed her own bag.

"Come on," Lindsey whispered so only he could here. Draco let her drag her inside as he welcomed back her odd comforting. Draco knew she was still hiding her pain, much as he had been doing, keeping a wall built around her. This sent a wave of guilt spiraling through his body, knowing that he didn't deserve this relief.

Trying not to seem rude, Draco casually shrugged out of her touch, causing Lindsey to look up at him skeptically. He didn't say anything and let the pain fill him up again as the snake shimmied around his forearm.

Lindsey didn't say anything as she and Draco went to go sit on some of the chairs. Malinda already had her credit card out, making last-minute arrangements with the clerk, who seemed angry that they had just came into the hotel without a reservation.

After what seemed like forever, Malinda finally managed to get a key from the clerk.

"They squeezed us in, and we have a two bed room," she said, grabbing her bag from the chair next to Lindsey. Draco stood up silently, too distracted by the pain in his body to really care about room arrangements. Lindsey sighed, gently slipping her hand back on the Dark Mark. Draco glowered at her as the pain stopped once again, causing guilt to rise up in his system for the second time in an hour.

Lindsey wasn't looking at him, however, and followed her mom to the second floor, dragging him along with her. A couple of people who were in the hallways glanced at Draco, who was still wearing his dirty black suit, but otherwise didn't pay any attention to the newcomers.

The room they had wasn't the most spectacular, but considering, it was fair enough for one night.

Two beds rested on the right hand side of the room, blue and red trimming hanging from the mattresses. A decent sized TV was resting atop a wooden cabinet on the left that was probably used during longer stays. The bathroom was adjoined at the opposite corner as the beds, one giant mirror resting above the sink. The interior design was simple and casual, nothing like the majestic furniture Draco was used to. He watched as Lindsey and Malinda dropped their bags against the wall warily.

"I'm going to…go get some pizza," said Malinda after a long silence, grabbing the car keys and some money. Draco nodded in acknowledgement while Lindsey smiled. Malinda left the room quickly, snapping the door shut behind her.

The tension seemed to ease a bit after Malinda had left, and Draco moved away from the entry-way, Lindsey at his side.

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**It's a teensey bit shorter than the others I believe, but the next part is going to be...uh...very...conflict-y. :) Please review! ^^**


	5. Chapter 5

"Why did you shrug away from me before?" Lindsey asked, causing Draco to sigh desperately.

"No reason," he muttered, finding some new interest in the shelf by the door. He placed his hand on it, gently sweeping his fingers across it's flat surface, tracing the swirly designs that were carved into it.

"I don't understand," Lindsey said, confused by why he would choose suffering over relief.

"Of course you don't," he said, a dark chuckle following his words, "You're young."

That hit Lindsey hard, and she didn't say anything else for a while, trying to regain the speech she had lost.

"I do believe you were thirteen too," she said, trying hard not to sound snappy, like she often did when spoken to as if she simply a little girl. If she had snapped, Draco didn't seem to take any notice.

"Yeah, and I didn't understand then either," he said meekly before adding, "I'm just saying, it's harder to understand when you're younger."

"Obviously, you didn't understand that if you walk up to a hippogriff than you'll most likely be attacked!" Lindsey said, her irritation showing through quite clearly. Draco flinched at the mentioning of the incident.

"My point exactly," he said, his voice softer than it was before. Draco was looking down at the ground, remembering how foolish he was back then, and how he would give almost everything to change his actions.

Lindsey didn't respond, attempting to calm down before she spoke again.

"Don't apologize," Draco said as Lindsey opened her mouth to do so, "You didn't do anything I haven't deserved." Lindsey felt like reaching out to him, where she was sure that his mark had started burning him again, and tell him that wasn't true. Instead, she said something else, not nearly as obliging.

"How long are you going to do this?" she asked, her voice barely audible. Draco kept his mouth shut, trying hard himself not to yell at her.

"You're sulking," Lindsey said before he could say anything, "You're not eating, and you're blaming yourself for something that's not your fault."

"You don't underst…" Draco shouted back before having Lindsey cut him off.

"Draco, I'm thirteen, not stupid. Stop treating me like I am! I may not fully understand everything you're trying to tell me, but I understand enough!"

Draco didn't have anything else to say, and stared at her in shock, no longer interested in the not-so-fancy woodwork. He was used to be yelled at by his father, his teachers, his peers, Lord Voldemort, but not Lindsey. It hurt him, like something had stabbed him in the heart.

"I have the pizza," Malinda said, entering the shockingly silent room. She looked from Lindsey to Draco, and could almost see the tension between them.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, clearly missing something. Lindsey and Draco both replied at the same time with a solid, "No," and sat down at the little table. Sitting in the middle was one medium pepperoni pizza, usually Lindsey's favorite.

Today, however, she simply took one piece of pizza and picked the pepperoni off the cheese one at a time. When she had finished with that, Lindsey started picking at the cheese absently.

Draco sat at the table, his arms folded, not wanting to touch the pizza, he surely couldn't keep _that_ down.

"Don't you want some?" Malinda asked, curious as to why Draco wasn't eating. Draco didn't even bother looking at her as he responded.

"No, I'm not hungry," he said, glowering down at the table, tracing the white plastic top with his eyes.

"Yeah Mom, didn't I tell you? Draco doesn't eat anymore. Something about his oh-so-great image," Lindsey said, laughing darkly. Draco looked up at her, his head somewhat light-headed as anger boiled up inside of him.

Malinda stared, bewildered, as Lindsey got up, left her pizza on the table, and left the room. Draco sat there, unmoving, as Malinda turned to him

"I didn't do anything," Draco explained, before Malinda could utter a word, "I guess she just has an anger problem she never told you about." With this being said, Draco stood up, excusing himself from the table, leaving Malinda sitting there with nearly an entire un-eaten pizza.

Lindsey kept on walking, not knowing where she was going exactly. She had tried to keep all of her emotions from flowing out, but after letting one emotion out, she couldn't hold back the others.

Night was near; faraway stars were glowing against the dark blue sky. Lindsey kept walking around until she found the outdoor pool. No one was out here, as it was getting chilly, and she sat down on the ledge, watching moths gather around the street light across from her.

As Draco let his anger fade away, he felt terrible about what he'd done. He knew she was already on the verge of a breakdown, and yet he still caused her more pain. Was that all he was, a pain-giver? Like the rest of the Death Eaters? The feelings of guilt and pain swirled around his head as he sat down outside the hotel entrance, leaning against the wall.

For the first time in months, Lindsey let tears escape her eyes, slowly falling down her face. She didn't love Harry like her mom had, and more often than not she found herself annoyed with the way he spoke to her. He never really understood her, always (jokingly) saying that Lindsey was wasting her time on her beloved hobbies.

But having him die, having Harry die, had hurt her. Her mom was a mess, maybe even in a state of depression. Lindsey's family was slowly being taken away form her. First her grandparents, then her dog, now Harry. Her dad surely had no intention of seeing her again after their last meeting. Lindsey wasn't able to do anything else but cry; she cried for her grandparents, she cried for her dad, she cried for Harry, and most importantly: she cried for herself.

Draco waited outside until he saw Malinda walk towards the car, and then headed back to their room. Closing the bathroom door behind him, he looked into the mirror the second time that day to see nothing more than what he knew he would: a monster. Draco's face was pale, all of the healthy color that had been in it lost. His blond locks had lost their shine, grease and dirt coating most of it. He slowly looked at the feature he knew would scare him the most, his eyes. The same crystal blue eyes that had once been lively and cheerful, were turned ice cold, sad. It was as if a cloud had been settling on his pupils.

Hating the creature that he saw, Draco tried pathetically to destroy his image. Without thinking, he bunched his hand into a fist and, with all his might, smashed the mirror. He knew it was wrong as soon as he had done it, and hastily grabbed his wand from his robes, muttering "Reparo".

The mirror didn't react very well to his weak spell, and only the largest chunks of the mirror flew back into their proper place. Draco started gasping as pain surged through his hands, and looked down to find blood blanketing it. Not knowing what to do, Draco ran off, leaving the little shards of glass behind with a pool of blood.

Malinda had returned from her little trip, in which she had gotten a box of cigarettes. After having a few, she returned into her room and lied down on the comfortable bed, not noticing the little specks of blood that stained the dark gray carpet below her feet. Picking up the remote, she flickered through random channels, figuring Draco was probably with her daughter, safe and sound.

Lindsey had finally stopped crying, and was wiping away her tears, ready to go back to her room and face Draco and her mom. Carefully, she stood up, making sure she was capable of walking, and then paced casually to her room as if nothing had ever happened.

"Hey Mom," Lindsey said, entering the room, looking around to see where Draco could possibly be, "Sorry about earlier. Do you know where Draco is?" Malinda turned her head from the TV and stared at her daughter.

"He wasn't with you?" Malinda asked. Lindsey shook her head.

"No, wasn't he in here?"

"He left right after you did. I figured he was with you!" Lindsey shook her head and went into the bathroom as if he would jump out at her from behind a door as a sick, twisted, joke. As she entered, he wasn't there, but the broken mirror caught her attention.

"Draco," she whispered, staring at the blood and glass that had scattered the floor in front of her. Her eyes widened, tears filling her eyes again, and went back into the main room.

"What's wrong?" asked Malinda, seeing that her daughter was crying.

"Draco, we have to find Draco," Lindsey said, not wanting to frighten her mother any more with the bathroom incident. Malinda nodded, grabbed her black coat, and went out into the hallway with her daughter.

Draco was curled up, once again using the wall as support. He clutched his hand and arm, unable to bare anymore of the pain. His blood had already created another pool below him and it soaked through his jacket. The Dark Mark had started burning again, causing Draco little to no comfort or relief. He started, uncontrollably, mumbling and weeping, his eyes shut tight from the pain.

"Draco?" Lindsey called desperately, rounding corner after corner, trying to find Draco. Malinda had decided to search the building while Lindsey searched outside.

Lindsey had begun to loose hope of finding him when she saw heard a muffled cry not to far away. Thinking it was probably Draco, she ran towards it, feeling dizzy with worry. Sure enough, he was there, lying on the cold grass holding his hand to his chest.

"Draco," she whispered rushing over to his side, "What happened?" Draco couldn't reply through the pain, and it took all of his strength to even be able to hear her.

Lindsey sat down next to him, her jeans and shoes soaking up the blood that was suffocating the grass. Hastily, Lindsey took off the blue and white jacket she had been wearing and wrapped it around Draco's arm to slow the bleeding. It didn't work for long however, and the bleeding simply went right through the thin jacket and onto Lindsey's hands.

"Tell me what happened," Lindsey said, gently letting her fingers touch the Dark Mark on his left forearm. Draco gasped once, but tried to calm down.

"I'm sorry…the mirror…horrible…" he said weakly, his voice barely more than a whisper. Lindsey's hand was getting coated with red blood, but she didn't worry about it as she supported Draco's body. Cautiously, she pulled him up into a sitting position, careful not to move his blood-covered hand too much.

"You broke the mirror, I figured that out, but I need to know why," Lindsey said, gently gripping his arm, her eyes filled with worry and tears.

"I…" he gasped, his words slurring into his cries, "Monster…smashed it…" Lindsey watched helplessly as Draco continued whimpering, his troubled cries piercing the night sky around them.

Draco could barely feel his body anymore, and struggled to get feeling back in his arm so he could feel Lindsey with him._ 'So this is what it's like to die_ ,' he thought to himself as his train of thought slowly disappeared.

"No…Draco…please…" cried Lindsey, a new guilt rising in her chest, "Stay with me…please…we need you…"

He hadn't heard what she had said, loosing what little consciousness he had left.

Draco's body was merely ninety-three pounds, a very unhealthy weight for someone who's seventeen years old, and wouldn't last much longer if he kept loosing blood. Lindsey knew that he was dying, but was unsure of how to help him other than her simple, useless comforts.

"Lindsey?" Malinda called, rounding the corner at the sound of her frantic daughter. She broke her stride as she saw Draco, his arm and clothes blotched in ruby-red blood.

Before Lindsey was able to explain to her mom what had happened, Malinda backed away, running away from the scene, probably rushing to get help. Lindsey sighed miserably as she continued to hold Draco up, still easing the pain on his Dark Mark.

Draco could feel himself slipping away, his heart pumping slowly. He felt a faint dizziness, but it wasn't necessarily unpleasant. More of an enlightenment actually. Somehow, his last thoughts were directed towards his long time arch-enemy, Harry Potter.

He could see his stupid, messy black hair sticking up in odd places. It was almost as if Potter was actually in front of him, wherever it was he was standing. The background was simply a white, glowing light, deprived of any shadows.

"Draco?" Harry asked, his voice almost as surprised as Draco felt.

"What are you doing here?" Draco asked, his voice weak, "This is _my_ death!"

"What are you talking about? This is _my dream_!" Harry exclaimed, staring at Draco. Draco shook his head.

"No. No, I'm dying. This isn't _your dream_!" replied Draco, his eyes dazed as they argued.

"It is _my dream_, and I would like to know why _my dream_ involves you dying!" Potter said, his face reflecting all of Draco's confusion.

"This is, to both of you, a meeting," said a quiet voice from the background. Draco knew, instantly, who it was. It was the same, white-haired, spectacled, bearded, old man that had been headmaster at his time at Hogwarts. The same man Draco had been ordered to kill no more than a year ago, Albus Dumbledore.

Draco and Harry both gawked at Dumbledore, questioning themselves and their subconscious minds.

"Harry, you need to wake up and need to get to Draco," Dumbledore explained, his voice calm. Draco made a face.

"No. I want to die. I don't want to wake up again," Draco said, his voice going back to it's Slytherin flare.

"Draco, that is not true," Dumbledore said, his eyes concerned.

"Yes it is!" hissed Draco angrily, "I'll just be killed anyway! There's no reason for me to keep living anymore!"

"Oh really?" Dumbledore asked, a bemused expression on his face, "Not even to save two other lives? Malinda and…Lindsey's?" Draco, even in what he believed to be his death, felt himself pale.

"I'll take that as a no, you no longer wish to die," said Dumbledore, a gentle smile on his face. He turned towards Harry before speaking again. "Harry, you need to get your friends and get to Draco as quick as possible. Do not hesitate!"

After Dumbledore's words, both Potter and Draco blurred away into the light, Harry waking up from his sleep and Draco returning to the very verge of his life-line.

"Draco? Can you hear me?" Lindsey asked, knowing the answer already. His face had turned, although it didn't seem to be possible, even paler, bringing out every mark on his body.

"Draco!" squealed a high-pitched voice from behind her. Lindsey turned her head to see a girl with brown hair, a few strands of red intertwined in it. Her face was shocked, fearful even, as she saw Draco's body lying next to Lindsey.

"Bloody Hell," said another voice, coming from a boy around Draco's age with orange-red hair. He was staring at Draco, his eyes terrified.

"Dumbledore was right," Potter muttered, watching Draco in awe.

"What happened to him?" asked the girl, Hermione, kneeling next to Lindsey.

"He…glass," Lindsey responded, not quite sure herself what he was doing. Ron, the red-haired boy, was right at Hermione's side, his eyes no longer fearful, but concerned.

"Glass?" Harry asked, still staring down at Draco. Lindsey nodded and continued.

"I don't know what happened exactly. The mirror in the bathroom was broken. It looked like he tried to fix it," she explained, worry obvious in her expression, "He…never mind." She didn't want to tell them about Draco saying that he was a monster, she would try to deal with that later.

Hermione had already started muttering a spell under her breath, and slowly, the wound stopped bleeding. Ron had his arm wrapped around Hermione as she attempted to heal Draco.

"How were you…" Harry started asking Lindsey, remembering what Dumbledore had said about two other lives. He struggled to remember the names, but Lindsey spoke first.

"Bellatrix. They were gathering people for Lord Voldemort. Bellatrix tried to capture us, but went to go talk to Voldemort first. And I guess I sort of convinced Draco to leave with us," she said, purposefully not mentioning the other events that had happened.

"You actually said Voldemort," said Harry, a, albeit, weak smile on his face. Lindsey turned to him and returned his feeble smile.

Draco's wounds were almost completely healed, but he had still lost a lot of blood, and they weren't sure if he would make it, even with proper care.

"I'd give anything to know what the bloody hell he was thinking," Ron said, shaking his head as Hermione finished.

"If we're lucky, maybe we can find out. But we need to get him back to London as soon as possible," Hermione said, standing up. Ron and Lindsey followed shortly after, Lindsey's clothed splotted with blood.

"What about her," Ron said, nodding his head towards Lindsey. Hermione and Harry exchanged a quick, nervous glance before grabbing their wands from their pockets, ready to erase Lindsey's minds of these events.

* * *

**I hope this'll last until at least Sunday. I have a lot going on with my friends who all asked to hang out within a day of each other. -_-U Oh well, cause I'll just suffer the pain of being away fomr this fanfic for a few day. ^^U Enjoy, and please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Don't," Lindsey said, stepping away from them, knowing what they were thinking, "It won' help anything. The Death Eaters are tracking us. You'll just end up killing both of us if you erase our memories."

"Us?" Ron asked, clearly confused. Harry hadn't explained to them about the two muggles that were involved in this mess.

"In my dream," he started, "Dumbledore said there were two other lives that Draco had to protect."

"Me and my mom," Lindsey said, looking up at him. Harry nodded.

"Yeah," he said, suddenly remembering one of the names. The one Draco had reacted to, "Lindsey?"

"Your dream told you my name?" Lindsey asked, puzzled.

"No, well, yes. I don't know, it may not have been a dream. I saw Draco in it, and he was…dying."

Lindsey felt her face pale and looked away from them, "And what's that have to do with my name being involved?"

"Dumbledore was there. He told me two names, but I can only remember yours. You said your mom was involved in this to?"

"Yeah, Malinda," Lindsey said, and added, "She's in the hotel somewhere, I thought she went to get help, but she's taking a long time."

"Well, you need to go get her, I'm not sure how long Draco can hold up," Hermione said, causing everyone to glance at a non-moving, barely-breathing, Draco.

Draco could hear a faint buzzing noise from the world around him as he tried to hang on. Someone had healed him, that much he knew, but he wasn't sure who did it or how they found out. Draco also noted that his arm was burning like it was on fire, but all of the pain was in the back of his mind. Like he was watching himself react to the pain, rather than feel it first-hand.

"I can't get her," Lindsey said, suddenly feeling very protective over Draco as she placed her hand on his. Hermione and Ron exchanged another glance, confused by Lindsey's defensive reaction. Harry didn't say anything, but watched his supposed enemy lie in the grass, death surrounding his very soul.

"It's alright. I'll get her. What's the room number?" Harry said before anyone could reasonably tell Lindsey that she was the only one who was capable of finding her mom.

"603," she replied immediately, "Second floor. She has brown hair and blue eyes. Not much taller than I am." Harry nodded, and left the group, Ron and Hermione gawking at Lindsey.

"Why won't you go find your mom?" Ron asked. Lindsey didn't reply, and watched Draco, her eyes gentle.

"She's your mom!" exclaimed Hermione, clearly troubled, "How could you not want to find her?"

"Draco saved our lives Hermione, I can't forget that," Lindsey responded, her voice not much more than a whisper. Hermione didn't have anything else to say, and put her chin to her knees, resting on the ground next to Lindsey.

"He's still a rotten old git," Ron said, interrupting the awkward silence that hung in the air. Lindsey turned her head to glower at him, but ended up smiling at some thought that crossed her mind.

"You're right," Lindsey said, Ron giving her a distraught look before she continued, "I know he is. Which may be why I can't get away from him." Ron raised his eyebrows while Hermione just stared.

"You're mental," stated Ron, shaking his head disbelievingly.

"Maybe I am," Lindsey said, still smiling. She looked down at Draco again, and placed her hand on the slithering serpent, hoping it would help somehow.

It seemed to do some good, for he twitched one of his fingers at her touch. Draco had indeed felt her hand on his mark, and tried desperately to respond, but wasn't sure if he had actually managed to move his hand or not. A pressure was building in his head, and Draco's thinking was broken, only small, pointless thoughts consumed it.

"Did he just…twitch?" Ron asked, staring at Draco's finger. Lindsey smiled.

"That's a good sign. Well, good for this situation, which is bad," said Hermione, unsure of how to word her sentence properly.

"His mark had been burning almost constantly since we escaped," explained Lindsey, taking a deep breath.

"The entire time?" Ron asked, wonder hidden beneath his concern.

"Almost," Lindsey said. Ron looked down at Draco with a new understanding in his eyes.

Harry returned with Malinda a few moments later, her eyes watery and shaken by Draco's previous state.

Ron and Hermione stared at Malinda, who's hair was once again messed up and her make-up running down her face. Lindsey wasn't surprised, but looked at her mother with sudden sympathy.

"You were actually crying for Malfoy?" Ron asked, his nose twitched up in confusion. He received a painful jab from Hermione's elbow.

"It wasn't just Draco," Lindsey said, nearly inaudible. Ron, Harry, and Hermione all stared at her, Malinda looking down at her shoes.

"Never mind," muttered Lindsey, looking back down at Draco, "We need to get going." Everyone gave her a skeptical look before finally deciding that she was right, Draco was running out of time.

"I'll take Malfoy," Harry said, leaning down next to the nearly-dead body. Carefully, Harry hoisted Draco up, gripping his arm so that Draco could disapparate with him.

Before anyone else said anything, Lindsey walked over to Hermione, grabbing her arm, "You can take me."

Ron, glaring at Lindsey and Hermione, walked over to Malinda, grabbing her arm awkwardly. Without another word, they all started swirling again through a white light. This time, they were going faster than when Draco had taken them, and the entire way was streaked with black lines. It felt, like most magical transportation, as if they were being pulled through a very uncomfortably tight tube.

Draco knew someone was moving him, that he was being apparated, but he couldn't do anything about it. Instead, thoughts of random things ran through his head. The taste of the pumpkin juice at Hogwarts, along with his silly little arm-candy, Pansy Parkinson.

Harry and Draco had nearly fallen over when they arrived in London, staying up only by a brick wall behind them. Draco's head was slumped forward, looking dreadfully boney.

Malinda and Ron had nearly ran into the wall when they appeared, a few seconds after Harry and Draco. Hermione and Lindsey were last, landing more elegantly than the other pairs do to Hermione's better experience.

"Alright, now we need to get back to Hogwarts," said Ron, staring at the bricks, puzzled as to what to do next.

"We can't apparate to and from Hogwarts," Hermione said in a matter-of-fact tone. "It's lucky we were able to leave when we did, using the Room of Requirement."

"Than what are we supposed to do?" Ron asked, his voice higher than usual. No one answered, all of them thinking of various solutions that would not end up doing any good.

"We _could _go to St. Mungo's," Hermione suggested. Harry shook his head.

"Draco is a Death Eater. They'd never give him the proper care he needs," he explained, trying to think of another idea.

"There was the…the vanishing cabinet…wasn't there?" Lindsey suggested, trying to give some sort of option to the group. No one responded, weighing the dangers of her idea.

"Technically, yes. I don't know if it's still works though. No one's used it for a while," Hermione said, staring off into the bricks.

"It's the only chance we have," Harry said humbly. As if to prove their point, Draco let out a soft moan, not of his own accord.

"We're going to have to go through Diagon Alley," Ron said, "And get to Burgin & Burke's."

"I know, but we don't have another choice," another soft moan came from Draco as Harry spoke, "Come on." Harry shifted under Draco's weight and started tapping bricks with his wand in a pattern-like gesture.

After a few taps, the bricks moved sideways, creating a wide passageway for the group.

"Wait, I think we should put a disillusion charm on, we don't want to be seen, out of Hogwarts, going into Burgin & Burke's," Hermione said hastily, grabbing Harry's arm. She whipped her wand around a few times and they became invisible, all holding onto one another so they wouldn't loose each other due to the camouflage.

Slowly, they began to make their way into the street. Nearly all of the shops were closed, the windows dark and covered in cobwebs. Inside the windowsill, dust particles were visible, collecting on top of the metal and wood.

Not many were outside, and those who were had quickly scurried away from any movement, sound, or feeling. Lindsey had once felt a cold hand touch the back of her neck, only to turn around and find nothing. She thought maybe it was Hermione, but didn't dare ask out of fear for her answer consisting of 'no'.

When they had finally arrived at the little turn that led down Knockturn Alley they, quickly, glanced around cautiously and continued down the steps, the darkness on Knockturn Alley even more noticeable than the depressive feel in Diagon Alley.

After another ten minutes or so of walking, Harry was the first to spy Burgin & Burke's. It was open, a squeaky, rustic sign hanging above the entryway. The curtain's were closed, hanging across the windows like ghostly flags of death.

Very cautiously, Harry placed his hand on doorknob, hoping with all of his heart, soul, and mind, that no one was inside.

An eerie wind blew across Lindsey's shoulder, and she flinched back, causing Hermione to gasp with confusion. Lindsey silently assured her that she was fine by squeezing Hermione's hand gently; she relaxed immediately.

As Harry opened the door to Burgin & Burke's, he felt Draco's warm, frantic breath on his skin, and wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing.

Even the door seemed to let out a sickly moan when it was opened, causing the group to hold their breath (apart from Draco of course). As far as Harry could tell, no one was inside, but held his wand at the ready, just to be safe.

Slowly and carefully, the made their way inside. When Harry was sure that there wasn't anyone in the building, he stopped walking. Hermione took out her wand, muttered a few words, and slowly everyone came back into view, letting go of each other's hands.

Malinda went to go stand by her daughter, who had went over to the cabinet that was sitting on a round, wooden table, collecting dust. Harry, Hermione, and Ron, had all checked to make sure they were okay before following Lindsey and Malinda to the cabinet. Draco was still leaning on Harry, his breath frenzied.

"This better work," Lindsey said, opening the door to the cabinet. Everyone gasped at what lay on the bottom of the cabinet, for no one had been braced for what lay there.

* * *

**Alright, another chapter up. ^^ Sorry for such slow updates, it's been a hectic week. Please review...means a lot!**


	7. Chapter 7

Blood was oozing throughout it's fur, creating gray-red streaks down its body. The paws were already coated, one bloody footprint lying next to it's front leg. It's body was limp, and not a single strand of gray fur twitched on it's body.

Hermione gasped again, clasping her hand to her mouth, as she realized that it was a dead wolf. Nobody else said anything, but Malinda and Lindsey's eyes were wide, mingled with shock and fear.

"It's a…dead wolf," Ron stated, a terrified expression on his face.

"Not again," Lindsey whispered, her voice wavering. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all turned to her, puzzled. Lindsey backed away from the cabinet, until she bumped into Hermione.

"What do you mean, 'again'?" Harry questioned, still supporting Draco's body; he was sleeping, and never saw the dead body, although he knew absently that something was wrong.

"A…a raven. Was in my room," Lindsey said, "When we went to go pack our things," Lindsey explained, vaguely remembering that their efforts were useless, their belongings lay forgotten back at the motel.

"A…_dead_…raven?" Ron asked, his nose twitching up again in disgust and disbelief.

"Y…yes," replied Lindsey. Malinda hadn't said anything, and continued staring at the bloody wolf as Lindsey continued, "Well, it…it wasn't dead at first."

A long, deadly silence filled the room as they all exchanged glances with each other. Malinda still hadn't removed her eyes from the wolf, and Lindsey was watching Draco, remembering how he had been so weak after they had found the raven.

"Come on," Harry said, moving closer to the wolf. Ron and Hermione followed him shortly after, leaving Draco, Lindsey, and Malinda on the sidelines. Lindsey was now supporting Draco, trying not to think about how close to death he was right then.

Harry peered over the wolf, to find a giant gash across the wolf's stomach. It's eyes were closed, and it's pulse was silent as night. Gulping, Harry pulled his wand out in front of him, and muttered, "Wingardium Leviosa." The wolf's body limply floated into the air, causing Hermione to gasp in horror. Ron gently put his hand on Hermione's back as she leaned into him for support, tears rolling down her scared face.

Harry tried not to think at all as he hastily moved the wolf behind the nearby counter. Malinda wasn't watching, but warm, salty tears still fell down her cheeks. Lindsey, desperate not to start crying herself, focused on Draco's irregular breathing, counting each one as it came and went.

Draco himself had no idea what was going on, but he could feel Lindsey's warm touch on his skin. Frantically, he tried to open his eyes, trying to communicate with her, trying to live on.

Lindsey turned to Draco when he stirred, but sighed helplessly as he went back to how he was before: silent and still. Hermione had straightened her composure up, and was attempting to rid the blood with a spell while Ron and Harry tried to do something with the wolf so it wouldn't be quite so noticeable behind the counter.

Within about five minutes, (that seemed like forever), all signs of the wolf had disappeared. Hermione and Harry exchanged a nervous glance with each other, before turning towards the silent audience.

"I'll go first," Harry offered, "I'll come back as long as it worked to get you guys." Nobody said anything, and Harry took it as a sign to continue. Huffing to himself, he stepped into the box.

Lindsey watched as Harry closed the cabinet door behind him, and immediately she could feel his presence disappear. Everyone else seemed to notice, because some of the tension had left the air; replaced by it was a sense of awkwardness.

"This day just keeps getting weirder and weirder," Ron said at last, raising his eyebrows at the floorboards. Lindsey let loose a mocking grin.

"This _week_ for us," she said. Ron chuckled timidly, Hermione giving her a half-hearted smile. Malinda didn't say anything, but her eyes were no longer watery.

"So, what's up between you and Draco anyway?" Ron asked, trying to lighten the muggy mood. Lindsey could feel her pace turn pink, but responded in a casual voice, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're a bit protective over him," Ron said, trying not to laugh out loud, "Surely there's a reason for that." Hermione elbowed Ron again, but her face was as amused as his.

"Saving my life isn't a good enough reason for you?" Lindsey said, only half-sarcastically. Ron and Hermione's faces went back to their original state at her words, remembering how much she had really been through the past few days.

"Draco must have had a heart that he never showed us," Ron said after another long, thoughtful silence, "Or you're really persuasive."

"Combination of both, I think," Lindsey explained, a tight smile on her lips. Hermione looked down at her face, and let out a caring smile of her own.

The room was suddenly filled with another presence, presumed to be Harry. Sure enough, a second later, Harry had opened the door of the cabinet and stepped out.

"It works. The Room of Requirements is abandoned. We should get there alright," Harry explained matter-of-factly. He walked over to where Draco was now propped against the wall and lifted him up carefully.

"We'll go in pairs though, just to be safe," he said, dragging Draco inside the cabinet with him. Lindsey quickly rushed over to Hermione again, leaving Ron and Malinda to go with each other for the second time now, as Harry and Draco disappeared.

"Bloody hell, what's your problem?" Ron asked, grinning despite himself, "Do you hate me or something?"

"Hate is a strong word," Lindsey said, smirking at Ron, "I prefer to use mild dislike." Before Ron could reply, Hermione and Lindsey entered the vanishing cabinet, immediately disappearing from the room. As expected, it felt as though they were being pulled through a tube, but instead of moving horizontally like in apparition, it was more of a vertical movement, followed by a violent horizontal one.

Lindsey and Hermione practically fell out of the cabinet, for Harry hadn't closed it up when he went through with Draco.

"Well, that went well," Hermione said, dusting off the black pants she was wearing. Harry gave her a quick smile before Ron and Malinda came bursting into sight. Malinda had managed to stay upright, but Ron had nearly doubled-over.

"Blimey, I think I prefer apparating!" he said, his eyes wide. Lindsey snickered at his expression, and Hermione followed her laughter.

"We need to get Draco to the hospital wing," Harry said, interrupting the sudden laughter in the room. The two girls shut their mouths, and everyone turned towards the blond-haired, nearly dead, Draco.

Draco had no idea what was going on anymore. He didn't know whether Lindsey was still there or if Voldemort was holding him captive. He didn't even know if he was alive or dead. At this point in time, he didn't know anything.

After a few seconds, Harry repositioned Draco between himself and Ron, so that they could move him easier. Lindsey and Hermione followed closely after, and Malinda behind them.

No one dared say anything to them as they hoisted Draco throughout the castle. The members in the portraits were either sleeping, or if they were awake, only stared in shock. Not one student was to be seen, most likely in bed, not wanting to be caught by the distressed professors.

After what seemed like ages, the hospital wing came into view. Hopeful, they started moving faster towards it, both anxious and relieved that they had finally made it to their destination.

"What…oh my!" cried Madam Pomfrey, seeing Draco being hauled towards her, "What in the name of Merlin's beard happened?" Her brown hair was streaked with gray lines, and it was disarranged from a long days work.

"It's a long story…but he lost a lot of blood," Harry said, carefully handing her Draco's body. She immediately carried him over to one of the soft, white beds and checked his pulse.

"Tell me what happened," she said, rushing over towards her medicine closet. She grabbed a few different containers of strange colored liquid while Harry and Lindsey explained.

"He was…at a Motel in America," Harry stated, "And…I don't know why…but he broke one of the mirrors there."

"Draco was upset before that…" Lindsey said, remembering faintly the conversation they had been having. Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned to her while Madam Pomfrey started mixing some sort of potion-like drink together.

"He…well we…were sort of arguing," Lindsey said, suddenly feeling very guilty over all of this, "He wasn't eating much, at all really, and I was trying to get him to eat something…"

"Right, and so…" Harry said, but Lindsey finished up for him.

"…he broke the mirror and ran off. We found him outside…I don't know how long he had been out there. He was bleeding a lot…"

"And that's when I had the dream…" Harry blurt out, causing everyone to look at him. He regained his composure before continuing calmly, "That's when I had the dream that…that Draco was dying."

Poppy stared at him, her eyes wide, and said, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised…But that is just miraculous. And a poor choice as well. What would've happened if that dream of yours wasn't real?"

"But it _was_ real!" Harry exclaimed, his temper rising. Poppy shook her head, but didn't question further, to tired to argue with her frequent customer.

"Someone tried to heal him, who?" Poppy asked, inspecting Draco's arm. Hermione nervously raised her hand, feeling foolish.

"I did. I…I thought I should do something. Did I…did I do something wrong?"

"No, no dear, you didn't," Madam Pomfrey said, looking up at Hermione with sparkling, chocolate-colored eyes as she slowly healed Draco, "I was just going to praise you for your quick thinking." Hermione beamed.

"Although, he has definitely lost a lot of his blood, I think it's very likely he will recover. But he will have to be under super-vision twenty-four seven," Poppy said, eyeing Lindsey and Malinda, "You two are…muggles?" The trio received two disapproving eyes.

"Yes…but…Voldemort's after them. They were with Draco. They escaped together…" Harry tried to explain, not positive himself about what had happened.

"I can't do anything about that. I…I suggest you go tell the Headmaster," Poppy said, slipping a strange, purple-white liquid into Draco's mouth. Already, his face had regained a little color.

"_SNAPE!?!_" Harry blurted, causing the others to jump, "You can't be serious! He's _with _Voldemort!"

"Enough! Take both of them to him, now," Madam Pomfrey said, giving Harry one of her serious, you-have-to-do-it-now looks. Harry returned her favor with a glare, and turned on the spot. Lindsey and Malinda quickly scurried behind him, both of them nervous.

"I can't believe she's doing this to us," Harry muttered, half-running to Snape's office, "It's not going to go well."

"Well, the worst that could happen, Voldemort tortures us an then we die," Lindsey said sulkily. Malinda didn't say anything, and stared straight ahead.

The rest of the walk was silent, as they slowly made there way to Snape's office. Harry's anger seemed to be rolling off of him the entire length of the way, and Lindsey stayed a good few feet behind him.

Harry was indeed angry, and felt the heat radiating off of his face. He wasn't interested in seeing Snape again. Not since he killed Dumbledore. Not since he had taken over Dumbledore's former office and school. He wouldn't have wanted to see Snape if he gave him 100,000 galleons and a dozen Chocolate Frogs.

Color splashed around Draco's thoughts. He could see, through his mind's eye, the colors orange, green, and purple dancing around in strange patterns like a kaleidoscope. Slowly, he was able to regain some thoughts and feelings, as new blood entered his system.

Concentrating on his breathing, he noted that it was becoming easier. It was as if he had been crushed with a piano, and only now did anyone bother to lift it up. He hurt all over, every muscle and bone aching with agony.

However painful the healing may have been, he had never felt quite so happy in his life. Or maybe it was just his light-headedness that made him think that. Regardless, Draco's mind flitted into a world of contentment and relief. It was as if he had woken up to the world from a long, tiresome sleep.

"I doubt he'll wake up for a few days," Poppy said to Hermione and Ron, "He's been through a lot. It's going to take a lot of my strength just to get him on the road to proper recovery."

Hermione nervously bit her lip while Ron spoke. "He'll be alright though? In the end?"

"I should like to think so," Madam Pomfrey said, fluffing Draco's pillow once more before wiping off beads of sweat form her face. She looked pale and worn, and it made sense, considering what she had just been given to heal this late at night.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to go get some sleep. Someone will need to stay with him."

Ron and Hermione nodded, watching Draco's face as Poppy left.

"And if he does actually wake up, give him the glass on the table, it'll help," Madam Pomfrey added, before finally closing the hospital wing doors behind her.

Ron and Hermione, finally alone, took a seat next to Draco, watching as his breathing slowly became easier. Hermione's hair had been messed up from all of the traveling, but otherwise looked okay. Ron looked hardly phased at all, other than the fact that his stomach was growling; they hadn't had anything to eat since this morning.

"It's bloody weird though," Ron said quietly after a few minutes of silence, "Lindsey and Draco."

Hermione didn't say anything, wondering what the relationship was between Lindsey and Draco. They surely couldn't be _in_ love with each other, their age was too greatly separated.

But perhaps they were like brother and sister, protective over each other, loving each other, but not _in _love with each other.

Or maybe the least likely of all: they were simply fellow escapees who protected each other cause they felt like they had to. Hermione didn't think about it anymore, and just let her mind close all of her thoughts, and drifted off into a light sleep, using Ronald's shoulder as a pillow.

* * *

**And another chapter comes to a close. Will Draco really be okay? What will Snape decide to do with Malinda and Lindsey? Find out in the next chapter! :D Review please!**


	8. Chapter 8

Meanwhile, Harry, Malinda, and Lindsey had all reached Snape's office. Harry wasn't sure what he was supposed to do, but it didn't matter; Severus Snape had stepped out into the hallway, stopping dead as he caught sight of Potter and the two muggles he dragged behind him.

His eyes were wide as he observed Harry. Harry's hair, was, if possible, even messier than usual, and his glasses were dirty and askew. His usual Gryffindor uniform (consisting of a black cloak, a sweater, and black pants) was soiled and rips were evident throughout the cloak.

Snape's cold, dark eyes slipped over to Lindsey next, who was looking up at him with a determined glare. Her dark jeans were stained at the knees, and her honey-blond hair was far from tidy. The only thing that remained the same, had been her navy blue, cotton tank-top.

"What…" Snape said, finally letting his eyes rest on Malinda, "have we here?"

Malinda's usually curly hair greatly resembled that of an old mop, resting atop her head. Her eyes were teary again, scared by Snape's dark appearance. Holes were found in her jeans, and her plain red T-shirt was stained with mud and grass.

Before anyone could respond, Snape grabbed all three of them by the collar, and pulled them into the office with such force that they had been momentarily choked.

Throwing them roughly into three plain, black leather chairs, Snape started his questioning in a grave, ungrateful tone, "You two. You are wanted by the Dark Lord. What do you think you're doing here?"

"We were _trying_ to help Draco," Lindsey snapped, causing both Harry and Snape to stare at her with bemused expressions. It was quite rare that anyone would stand up to Snape, much less with a tone like she had just used. Malinda on the other hand, didn't look quite so confident in her voice, and stayed silent.

Severus' black, ridiculously never-washed, greasy hair, was long, falling almost down to his shoulders. He was, like most male Death Eaters, wearing a large, black cloak that made him, personally, look like an aloof chimpanzee, complimenting his big, dark eyebrows.

"Where is he?" asked Snape, a chisel of concern in his voice. Lindsey and Harry exchanged a quick glance before Harry answered.

"Hospital wing." Snape's eyes grew even larger.

"Why…is he in the Hospital wing?"

"That's not why we're here," Lindsey said, impatience in her tone. Snape glared at her.

"Tell me, _now_._"_

"He lost a lot of blood," Harry said quietly, looking away from Snape; Lindsey hadn't lowered her glower yet.

"How?"

"Broke a mirror," Lindsey replied, crossing her arms. Severus did the same, leaning on his desk towards her menacingly.

"Why?" he spitted out.

"I. Don't. Know."

"Why. Don't. You. Know."

"Because."

"Because. Why."

"I. Don't. Know."

"Are those the only words you know?"

"No." Snape stopped leaning on his desk, and uncrossed his arms at her annoying little words. Tension immediately left the air, and Harry was finally able to breath again as Snape fidgeted his hands.

"The Dark Lord is after you," Snape said simply, not looking at Lindsey.

"I already know Voldemort's after _us_," Lindsey corrected calmly, smiling innocently up at Snape, who's eyes were suddenly tracing the patterns on the wall.

"But _you_ especially," he replied after some silence. Lindsey's smile faded, as she became puzzled.

"Why?"

"Why do you think? You stood up to him. You convinced Draco to leave. You managed to escape, _alive_."

Lindsey sat in silence, thinking over Snape's words before responding casually. "So he wants me dead right? That's not any different than if he _wasn't _interested in me as much."

"He…doesn't want you dead," Snape said softly, almost inaudible. Harry and Lindsey stared up at him. Snape continued after no one replied, picking up a bottle of purple liquid on his desk as if he were inspecting it, "He wants you…to join him."

"He…_what!?!"_ Lindsey replied, not bothering to keep her voice down. Malinda stared at Snape, shocked. Harry had nearly the same response as Malinda, his mouth hanging open absently.

"Yes, he finds you quite…interesting," Snape said casually, as if this were simply a matter of everyday events. Lindsey didn't say anything, blinking back oncoming tears (that she wasn't sure why were there).

"Rumor has it, you were able to stop the pain on Draco's Dark Mark." Harry and Malinda both turned their eyes towards Lindsey, who looked down at her pale hands.

"Only numb it," she mumbled, twittering her thumbs together. Snape set down the vial he was inspecting, to watch her with raised eyebrows.

"Even so, that's quite amazing. Never heard of. Much like no one's ever heard of someone living through the killing curse," Severus said, nodding towards Potter, who met his gaze ruefully.

"It's not amazing. And I'm not joining him. Final," Lindsey stated, still speaking towards the floor. Snape let the tiniest smirk escape his large mouth.

"Of course your not," he said in his cold, crisp voice, "You are free to spend your time here in the castle. Perhaps there is something 'special' about you. But I will not be held responsible for your life."

"Fine," Lindsey said, finally looking up into Severus' eyes, "But I'm not, _'special'_." At this being said, Lindsey stood up and stomped off towards the door, swinging it open violently.

"Just…be careful," Snape said, as Lindsey rounded the corner, out of sight. Harry glanced once at Snape before following Lindsey out the door, while Malinda scurried behind them both.

"Merlin's beard, you scared me!" Ron cried as a distressed Lindsey stormed through the Hospital wing; Harry and Malinda followed shortly behind.

Lindsey didn't say anything, pulling up a chair next to Hermione who had woken with a jump.

"What happened?" Ron asked, Hermione still in a groggy state. Lindsey didn't respond, and stared down at Draco with un-seeing eyes.

"I'll tell you later," Harry said, standing behind Ron and Hermione. Hastily, Hermione started to get up to give Harry some room to sit down but her refused her offer with a hand gesture.

"I think I'm heading off to bed," said Harry, his tone hinting that they should too. Hermione and Ron exchanged a brief glance with each other before standing up, ready to leave the Hospital wing behind.

"Go ahead, I'll watch after Draco," Lindsey said in a monotone, her arms folded across her chest as if she were cold, which may have been the case with her clothing choices.

"Umm, Madam Pomfrey said to give Draco the drink on the table if he woke up," Hermione said softly, feeling guilty for having fallen asleep when they were left in charge of watching Draco. Lindsey nodded, and the trio disappeared through the giant, marble doors.

"You should get some sleep too," Lindsey said to Malinda, who had stayed behind. Her mother didn't move, but looked at Lindsey, her eyes soft and concerned. This was the first time they had been truly alone with each other (minus an unconscious Draco of course) since the incident.

"So should you," Malinda said, resting her hand on Lindsey's. She didn't respond, still watching Draco absently.

"You like him…don't you?" Malinda asked, causing Lindsey's face to burn a faded shade of pink.

"Yes," Lindsey said truthfully, letting the color slowly die from her face; this wasn't the question she had expected from her mom.

"Do you love him?"

"Yes," Lindsey said, a little, mischievous smile on her lips, "But I don't know if it's the way you think."

Malinda didn't say anything, but had a thoughtful glint in her eyes. Lindsey finally took her own eyes from Draco's body to meet her mom's.

"If you need me, I'll be here," Malinda said at last, and Lindsey smiled.

"I know you will be," she said, "You need some sleep now."

"Alright, I love you," Malinda said, walking slowly over to the other side of the room to a clean bed.

"Love you too, Mom," Lindsey replied, going back to looking at Draco. She listened as Malinda crept into her bed, pulling the sheets over her shoulders tiredly. A strip of moonlight escaped through the windows, causing Malinda's face to radiate brilliantly against the darkness in the room.

Careful not to wake Draco, Lindsey gently situated her hand on top of his; Draco's hand freezing from the lack of blood and recent strain. "Sleep well Draco," she whispered.

Draco's blond hair fell over his face, no longer covered in dirt and pebbles; a courtesy of Madam Pomfrey. His pale, blue eyes was resting greatly beneath his pale eyelids. His clothes had also been changed to the required, blood-free hospital shirt and pants.

He felt her there with him, Lindsey. Her hand was warm against his, like a warm cup of hot chocolate. With gooey white marshmallows, slowly melting and swirling into the chocolate; like his mother used to make when he was young.

Draco remembered coming home during the winter holidays to see his loving mother. He remembered sitting by the warm fireplace on Christmas, opening his usual presents that consisted of lots of cakes and treats, as well as new robes and quills for school. He would, not play, but sit out in the snow, watching each flake fall down to the ground contently.

"Don't be out too long," his mother would call out from their house window, "It's not good to get a cold before school starts up again. The Malfoys aren't sniffling, huffing muggles after all."

Draco remembered laughing, sneering at the pathetic, worthless muggles that were stopped by a common cold. Coming inside from the day's activities, he would always have a cup of the warm, mummy-made hot chocolate. Always having exactly three, fluffy white marshmallows in it; the same number of houses at Hogwarts who deserved an appreciation (Hufflepuff was the one they had left out).

Oh, how Draco missed his mom right then. She had always been there for him, no matter what his faults were. Narcissa's snowy-blond hair, always smelling of sweet shampoo, her crystal clear blue eyes that she had passed on to him, all of these memories past through Draco's young, tired mind as he lay there on the hospital bed, Lindsey at his side.

And then his father, oh his father, Lucius Malfoy. Draco's thoughts turned dark as he remembered his father, his father who was locked up in Azkaban, for being a slave to the Dark Lord.

It was as if Draco were looking into a mirror, his blond hair and pointed face were exact replicas of Lucius'. Except Lucius' face was darker, sullener, than Draco's had ever been.

Although Draco had indeed been serving the Dark Lord, he had not yet had the chance to become as cold as his father had. Years of discipline, pain, and suffering were evident in Lucius' eyes.

Memories of Draco's past wrong-doings and mistakes came drifting into his thoughts, most of them having to do with Potter, Granger, and Weasley.

Every year, Draco had made mistakes. Every year, his father had punished him, whether with words or physical violence, it didn't matter. Now that he was able to think clearly, Draco never once remembered his father praising him. Even the Dark Lord, for a fairly small task, had called his work "a job well done".

Lindsey watched as Draco started tossing around, and removed her hand form his. It didn't appear to be the Mark that was bothering him, and so she assumed he was just having a bad dream.

"Draco," called Lindsey, placing her hand on his forehead cautiously. Although she knew that he was most likely not having a good time at the moment, she had never felt so relieved in her life. If he had enough strength to move around in his sleep, surely he would be able to recover completely from the incident.

Exhausted with relief, Lindsey propped a pillow from a nearby bed onto her chair, and with one hand intertwined with Draco's, she drifted off into a well-needed, deep sleep.

She wasn't sure how long she had slept, but the sun was beginning to shine into the Hospital wing, so it had to be nearly morning. Stretching, she lifted her head from what she presumed to be her pillow. Only, when she turned around to look, she found Draco's pale, blue eyes looking back at her.

Jumping away, she stuttered mercilessly, "Wha…Draco…you're….I'm sorry…I didn't…"

Laughing playfully, Draco responded, "It's fine. You didn't do anything wrong."

Lindsey looked around to find herself sliding off of her chair, leaning in towards the bed Draco was sleeping on. He himself was propped up against the headboard, and she, blushing slightly, realized that she had not been sleeping on a pillow, but Draco's shoulder.

Her face burning, Lindsey pulled herself back onto the chair awkwardly. It was then that she realized her hand was still mingled with Draco's. He seemed to notice where her thoughts were headed, and answered for her.

"It was actually me who did that. You looked sort of miserable, sleeping like that on the chair. So I decided to let you use me as a pillow," he said, his old, Slytherin grin spreading on his face, "Not that I expect to be used by anyone after this."

"Oh," Lindsey said, finally taking her hand away from Draco's, wondering if it had been him who had done that too, or if they had actually been holding hands all night.

"That was _you_ though, I believe," Draco answered, reading Lindsey's mind. Slowly, it was beginning to kick into Lindsey's groggy system that Draco had just woken up from his near-death experience.

"Oh, Madam Pomfrey-" Lindsey began, but Draco cut her off.

"-I took it already. I figured that's what it was for. No worries." Lindsey looked next to her to find an empty, clear container on the bedside table.

"It took everything I had not to spit it out on you though," Draco said, a bright grin on his lips, "It was horribly foul."

"Oh, well _thank you Mister Malfoy_," Lindsey said sarcastically, elegantly bowing to Draco. He sneered at her sudden eloquence, before coughing dreadfully. Lindsey placed her hand on his shoulder, concern in her voice, "Are you okay?"

Draco nodded, coughed once again, before turning back towards Lindsey, "I'm fine. I guess it's just too much right now to be laughing."

"Rest then," Lindsey said, pushing Draco back into a lying position.

"Fine. But I'm not going back to sleep," Draco said stubbornly. Lindsey nodded, ignoring Draco's rude, obstinate tone.

"We can just talk," she said. Draco's throat felt as though it were on fire, probably a side effect of the potion he just drank. His head still hurt considerably, and he was sure that his body had been turned to jelly.

"What do you want to talk about?" he asked, suddenly feeling weaker than he had before.

"Whatever you want to talk about," Lindsey said, pausing, wondering if it was safe to put her hand back on Draco's. He noticed her glancing at his hand, and smiled; or perhaps smirked was a better word.

"You can go back to holding it, if it's bothering you," he said, wondering himself where the sudden sympathy had come from. He didn't think long however, for Lindsey had grabbed hold of his hand again, causing a warm feeling to radiate from it.

"You are _warm_," Draco said, closing his eyes pleasantly, feeling as if the rest of his body was trapped in a freezer.

"And you are _cold_," replied Lindsey, letting a grin creep across her face. He smiled back, his eyelids still closed.

"You really ought to sleep," Lindsey said, seeing how tired he truly was. Draco felt an involuntary frown cross his features, but didn't argue with her.

"Thank you," Lindsey said, realizing that Draco wasn't going to bicker with her about it.

"Just promise me something…" Draco started.

"Anything," Lindsey said, letting her hand gently sweep his arm.

"Promise me you won't leave me," he said. Lindsey was momentarily stunned by his wish, but soon followed through.

"I promise."

With this being said, Draco fell, once again, into a deep sleep as his body slowly regained some of the health he had lost.

* * *

**Finally finished this chapter. ^^ Major thanks to my only two reviewers, Hyruleepona (Shinji) and yugiohgx5dsgrl (Pollinelia) for helping me continue this story, couldn't do it without you guys! If you are reading this, please please please review! It helps me want to write more of this story!**


	9. Chapter 9

"Draco!" shrieked a voice from behind Lindsey. She turned her head around, wondering who was calling Draco's name so loudly.

Malinda had been awoken by the girl's high-pitched scream, and looked sleepily towards her daughter who shrugged, bemused. The girl who screamed was wearing a Slytherin uniform and had a flattened look to her face. A Dora the Explorer bob was on her head, making her look oddly like a pug. This, Lindsey only could guess, was Pansy Parkinson.

"Draco?" Pansy squealed, pushing Lindsey's arm out of the way, taking Draco's hand in her own. Lindsey shot her a dirty glare, but kept her mouth shut.

"Oh, you poor thing, it must be terrible. But I'm here now, everything will be okay," Pansy soothed, rubbing Draco's hand with hers.

Lindsey glared up at her, still sitting down, trying hard not to throw up all over her.

"Miss Parkinson, Mister Malfoy needs his rest. Please, you need to leave him alone and stop your squealing!" Madam Pomfrey said, looking over her shoulder. She had been getting a quick ailment for a little student who had sprouted green leaves from their arm.

Malinda had a bed-head, and her curls were now literally everywhere. She didn't seem to notice however, and yawned tiredly as Madam Pomfrey tended to the boy, who looked absolutely terrified. He must have been a first-year student, and by colors he was wearing, belonged to the Hufflepuff house.

"Oh, right," Pansy said, her nose scrunching up at Madam Pomfrey behind her back as she muttered, "Fool."

"Hello," Lindsey said, her temper rising. Malinda was giving Lindsey a warning stare, but she didn't seem notice.

"H…hi," Pansy said, her face showing obvious disgust as she saw Lindsey's state. Lindsey had been wearing casual muggle clothing, and her blond hair was disarranged from sleeping.

"Pansy, right?" Lindsey said, smiling up at Pansy innocently.

"What's it matter to you? What are you even doing here?" remarked Pansy, flinching away from Lindsey.

"Watching Draco," replied Lindsey, making her voice as soft and sweet as possible.

"Yeah, well your services are no longer required," Miss Parkinson snapped, staring back at Draco.

Draco could feel someone else's hand on his, a frantic, high-pitched voice following. He groaned silently, Pansy was there with him. Slowly but surely, he was able to make out parts of Lindsey and Pansy's argument.

"I don't even know how a filthy muggle like yourself got into this castle. What are you, Draco's stalker?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing. How'd you even find out Draco was here?" Lindsey barked back, no longer playing the innocent role in the conversation.

"Snape. He told everyone that Draco was back," Pansy presented snidely, "But he forgot to mention you. Or maybe he just didn't know you were here, and thought that perhaps you were part of the scum on the walls here at this retched school."

Lindsey refrained a laugh before she responded, "Actually, Snape hasn't even been down here yet. I was the one who told him that Draco was down here in the first place. So in a twisted, messed-up way, you heard about Draco from me."

Pansy's face went a brilliant pink at being told off like that by a muggle, and she jerked her head back towards Draco, causing her hair to bounce back and forth.

"You're really an annoying bitch, you know that?" murmured Pansy, her voice low and cold.

Draco couldn't take them fighting any longer and whispered lazily, "Leave her alone Pansy." Pansy and Lindsey both looked down at him; Pansy in shock as Lindsey smirked happily.

"Draco?" Pansy called, squeezing his hand, "Can you hear me?"

"Unfortunately, it's kinda hard not to," Draco replied, his voice calm, but sneering at the same time.

"Sorry Draco," Pansy murmured in what Lindsey presumed to be intended as a purr. From her however, it sounded more like a raspy little growl; the acronym caused Lindsey to break out in a little fit of giggles.

Pansy glared, "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," Lindsey said, letting her laughter die away into a simple smile, "There's just something about what you said that…seemed funny to me."

"Ugh," Pansy replied, rolling her eyes, but Draco was smiling, his eyes still shut tight.

"What did you mean by that, Lindsey?" he whispered stubbornly, wanting to hear what she had to say.

"Nothing," said Lindsey tauntingly.

"Pleeease?" Draco drawled out, trying to make his strained voice sound pleading.

"It's nothing," Lindsey said, a final tone to her voice. Draco frowned, but decided to question her about it later.

"Do you need anything Draco?" Pansy asked, using an (unusual for her) caring, worried voice.

"Peace and quiet would be nice," Draco said, a light smile on his face once again. Pansy felt her face go red; she had been the one who interrupted the silence in the first place. Quietly, she pulled up a nearby chair, shutting her lips in the process.

"Thank you," Draco said, a hint of humor in his voice. Pansy didn't say anything, but rubbed Draco's hands with her fingers. Lindsey eyed pug-faced Pansy before placing her own hand on Draco's mark.

"Why are you…" Pansy started, but Draco interrupted her, answering smoothly.

"…It helps. Eases the pain a little," he explained, leaving Pansy unable to argue further.

They sat their like that for a long time as Draco slept, thick tension building between Lindsey and Pansy. Malinda had been watching, holding her breath, as the testy conversation between the two continued. Now that both had been silenced, she had fallen into another sweet dream of hers.

"Draco," came a muted whisper came from the door. Lindsey and Pansy turned around to see Snape standing there, and Lindsey felt herself on the verge of screaming again.

Snape sauntered through the Hospital Wing, passing a sleeping Malinda, and stopped next to Draco's bed. He glanced at the two girls sitting at his bedside.

"You were supposed to be in class, Miss Parkinson," he spat out through his teeth, causing Pansy's face to change color.

"I-I know. I just, I-I thought that Draco w-would want someone next to him. To help him, you know," Pansy muttered through her blushed face. Snape observed Draco's condition, and looked back at Pansy.

"I believe that was Lindsey's job," Severus said, raising his eyebrows towards Lindsey, "Unless you two…are fighting over him. By which case, I would be honored to watch your romantic love lives collide."

Lindsey felt her own face turn bubble-gum pink, while Pansy's turned into an odd shade of red.

"Don't expect me to free you of any homework, despite what your other professors may let you get away with. I expect a two page essay of the use of Fungaljuice in Pepperesstum Potion finished in two days," Snape said to Pansy before walking over to Madam Pomfrey. Pansy looked down at her right hand, which was still perched on Draco's, and mumbled something about Snape that Lindsey was sure she wouldn't dare say to him in earshot.

"You really ought to go back to class," Lindsey said after a long silence. Pansy looked up at her and glared.

"No. Not until Draco is better!" she snapped, glowering.

"He may not be better for a long time," Lindsey whispered softly, not wanting to wake Draco.

"Then I won't go to class for a long time!" Parkinson replied menacingly. Lindsey rolled her eyes, and turned back to Draco, focusing on relieving him of any pain.

Draco could hear Parkinson, Lindsey, and Snape talking, but his brain wasn't registering what they were saying. He was tired, exhausted, and wanted nothing more than to fall asleep and never awake to his life and problems again.

"I expect him to be functioning in no more than a week. A week and a half and he'll be returning to classes," Snape said, causing Pomfrey's eyes to bulge out slightly from her sockets.

"A _week_, Snape?" Poppy said, eyeing Draco, "After everything he's been through, I would give him _two_ weeks before he should even get out of bed!"

"I agree, he needs his rest," Pansy said, looking up at Snape worriedly, "Surely you must understand what it's like, the mark and all?"

"No, Snape's right," said Lindsey, mentally noting that this was probably the only time her and Snape would ever agree on anything, "He can make it. Draco's stronger than you give him credit for."

"Yes, although I have to admit, he can be a bit cowardly when it comes to pain," Snape said, causing a barely conscious Draco to grimace as he recognized the words, "So I hope you'll be eligible to put up with it."

Snape strolled back through the Hospital Wing after saying these words, leaving Lindsey, Madam Pomfrey, and Miss Parkinson gaping around Draco's bed.

Draco knew his headmaster was right, he _was_ a coward when it came to physical pain. Any kind of pain, really. Draco Malfoy: the cowardly Death Eater who was trying to save two females from the Dark Lord's wrath. Good God, how had he gotten this far?

He had been too scared to perform the one task he was given by his master; kill Albus Dumbledore. Draco had been there, he had been prepared, he had known what to do, but when it came down to the actual kill, he had stepped aside, letting Snape do the job for him.

He was nothing more than a monster. A cowardly, worthless monster. What was he thinking, trying to save Lindsey and Malinda from the Dark Lord? How could he have ever been so stupid? If he hadn't saved them, he would still be with the rest of the Death Eaters, his pain only a fraction of what it was now.

Perhaps, if he were lucky, Lindsey and Malinda wouldn't have even suffered as they reached their death. But because of him, the two of them had suffered more than any human should. What the hell had he gotten himself into?

Lindsey and Pansy watched as Draco stirred uncomfortably, both of them worried about what he was going through.

"Poor Draco," Pansy said, clearly concerned. Lindsey didn't say anything, but gently squeezed his arm reassuringly.

The next few days fell into the same pattern, Lindsey and Pansy sitting next to an unconscious Draco while Malinda continued her resting. Lindsey and Pansy took turns watching Draco, since they too needed to sleep. Every once and a while, they would get up and stretch their legs, but never ventured further than the Hospital Wing doors.

Draco didn't wake up at all, and stayed in his unconscious state as he slowly recovered. Madam Pomfrey would heal him every day, and each time it left her drained and tired. Even so, Poppy managed to conjure meals for Lindsey and Malinda, not wanting the rest of the Great Hall to know that there are muggles in the school, for surely gossip would follow them.

Pansy however, was forced to leave twice a day for her meals, and was often found doing homework while she watched over Draco. Snape had been making daily visits, but never talked to anyone other than Madam Pomfrey, perhaps trying to ignore Pansy and Lindsey completely, which at this point was fine by them.

On the fourth day since Draco's accident, Lindsey was watching over Draco while Pansy was off eating dinner in the Great Hall when he finally woke up.

"Lindsey?" Draco called, propping himself up using his elbow. Having her name called, Lindsey snapped out of her meek thoughts, and looked down to see Draco awake, watching her with blue eyes.

"Draco, you're up," she said, smiling at him gently. He returned her smile, and tried to sit up.

"Here, let me help," Lindsey said, reaching out a hand, but Draco shrugged her helping hand away.

"No, I'm not disabled…yet," he said, chuckling lightly. His arms were weak, but he managed to stay upright without too much effort, considering what he had been through.

"How are you feeling?" Lindsey asked, unsure if she should get Madam Pomfrey or not. Draco shrugged casually, despite the pain in his shoulder blades.

"Hungry? Thirsty?" Lindsey asked, trying to be of some use to Draco while he as concious. He shook his head.

"No, I'm fine. Don't worry about me Lindsey. How are you?" said Draco. Lindsey replied quietly.

"I'm all right. Do you want me to get Madam Pomfrey?" she asked, concern in her green-blue eyes.

"No, where's Pansy?" Draco asked, becoming both annoyed and amused at her worry.

Lindsey's heart dropped at the mention of Pansy, but answered in a cool tone, "She went to go eat dinner. I'm sure she'll be back soon though."

"Then you have to tell me something…now," Draco started, "Why were you laughing a few days ago. That you wouldn't tell me."

Lindsey tilted her head to the side, but answered in a soft voice, "Oh, well, it's just, she sounded sort of like a growling dog when she apoligized, that's all…"

"Hmmm," Draco said thoughtfully, "Well, I had no idea you thought about people that way."

"I usually don't," Lindsey muttered as Draco smiled up at her.

"No, I like it. It's kinda…" he said, grabbing her hand, "Bad-ass. Especially for you." Lindsey felt her cheeks go a little bit pink, but smiled back at him, glad he was recovering so well from the incident. With the way he was healing, it was likely that Draco may actually be capable of getting out of bed in a mere few days.

* * *

**Alright, another one of my chapters is now uploaded. ^^ Special thanks to my constant reviwers: yugiohgx5dsgrl and Hyruleepona as well as my new reviewers: Leanora and Melora. It makes an author happy when you review their story. :D**


	10. Chapter 10

A sharp pain ran through Draco's arms, and he flinched from the suddenness of the sting.

"You okay?" Lindsey asked, ready to help Draco if necessary.

"Yeah, fine," he muttered, trying to make his voice sound reassuring. Lindsey wasn't fooled, however, and carefully helped him get back into a comfortable, lying position. His face had more color than a few days ago, but it was still pale and it looked as if his skin was simply stretching across his skull; all signs of muscle and fat deprived from his body.

"Rest," Lindsey murmured, not allowing him to move again. Draco frowned, but didn't dare argue as Lindsey let her hands rest on his Mark. The throbbing had left, but the aftermath left his shoulder and corresponding arm tingling uncomfortably.

Almost instantly, Draco had fallen back into another one of his nightmares. Darkness had consumed his mind, and not one light existed in the retched landscape he was stuck in.

"Lucius!" Draco heard his mother cry, reaching up towards her husband, who's face was floating evermore away. Lucius' pale face drifted further and further backwards, until it was completely out of Draco and Narcissa's sight. Draco watched, mortified, as his mother kneeled down into the shadows, her cold, white tears flowing down into the darkness below them. Draco began thrusting his arms and legs back and forth, running towards his helpless mother.

When he was a mere foot away from Narcissa, Draco reached out his hands, trying to help comfort his mother. Instead, his eyes became, unwillingly, focused on his left arm, where the Dark Mark rested.

The skull and snake, which had been forever encrusted upon his upper-left forearm, was slithering around like it had so often in recent times. Dark, thick raindrops slowly fell upon his skin from nowhere, and he looked up into the luminous, black sky above him.

As he hastily looked back down, his hair matted, the Dark Mark had been covered with blood. Both of his hands and arm were coated in the thick, red liquid. The raindrops turned his blood into a mucky brown color in no time, falling in thick lines onto his sleeve and the dark ground below him.

Startled by a abrupt hand on his shoulder, Draco turned his head to find Lindsey sitting next to him, her blond hair blowing in a non-existent breeze. He tried reaching up to touch her hand, to hold it, but she had faded away, just like his father, into the sea of endless darkness.

Sick of loosing people, Draco curled himself into a little ball, and cried harder than he ever remembered crying. Even in his own mind, the tears came on endlessly, without any sign that they would stop. So Draco just sat there, relinquishing himself from the pain that had endlessly been building up inside of him.

Lindsey watched, troubled, as tears fell from Draco's eyes and onto the bed sheets below. Pansy had still not returned, and she assumed that the girl was turning in missed homework to her professors.

"Draco," Lindsey whispered sympathetically, gently brushing her hand across his arm. Draco didn't feel her hand; Draco didn't feel anything but his pain and suffering in that moment.

More tears fell down his face, dampening the sheets below. Lindsey did the only thing she was capable of doing at that point: watch. It was in that instant that Pansy came strolling into the hospital wing. Her eyes widened as she saw Draco's teary eyes, and rushed over.

"What wrong Draco?" she cried, kneeling down next to his bed. Lindsey was about to explain what had happened when pug-faced Pansy shot her a dirty, loathing glare.

"What the hell did you do to him?" she whispered menacingly. Lindsey was taken aback at how she was being convicted without any explanation whatsoever.

"_I _didn't do anything!" Lindsey replied, making her voice sound just as dark as Parkinson's, "What right do you have to accuse me?"

Parkinson didn't say anything, but turned her large, fat head to Draco. Lindsey watched, angry, as Pansy's hair swished back and forth around her.

"You were the only one here," Pansy muttered.

"So you assumed it was me!" Lindsey said, her voice much louder than she anticipated.

"Yes, what else could it be?"

"Oh, gee, I don't know!" Lindsey exclaimed, dark humor obvious in the way she spoke, "Perhaps it was because of all the stress he had been dealing with. Trying to escape from Voldemort," -Pansy flinched at the name- "Having his own dad locked up in Azkaban. Not having any allies on any side. Trying to save two muggles as well as his own life. Or perhaps it could be the fact that he had just nearly lost his life, and the recovery process is unbearably painful! I don't know Pansy, I do not know what could possibly be wrong!"

Pansy cringed at her words, knowing that Lindsey was probably right, and looked away guiltily.

"You really need to stop blaming everyone else," Lindsey said after a long silence, "Until you know the full story, and stop thinking that you're always right."

Pansy stared angrily, cold hatred in her expression. Lindsey rolled her eyes, her temper ebbing away rapidly.

More silence passed through the air, and more tears fell from Draco's eyelashes. Lindsey and Pansy didn't speak again until later that night, when Pansy decided to watch Draco so Lindsey could sleep. They fell into this quiet manner over the next few days, Draco sleeping almost consistently, only waking for a few minutes, in which he would only ask how long he has been sleeping and if anything major had happened.

Finally, exactly one week from the time Draco was brought into the hospital, he awoke, feeling rather refreshed.

"Hey," Draco said, sitting up in the bed. Snape, Pomfrey, Lindsey, Pansy, and Malinda all turned to him. Although Malinda was across the room, she still managed to sit up when Draco did, trying to get a better view of what was going on.

"Draco," Pansy said, a weak smile fluttering on her lips, "You're up."

"Yes, I am," Draco replied, looking a bit bemused.

"How…"Snape started, his usual pauses cold, but concerned, "…are you feeling?"

"Great," Draco said, feeling rather foolish in front of all these people; not all that uncommon for him.

"Good. Because you are starting classes again in a few days," Severus said, twitching his mouth into a tight smile.

Draco's lips partet slightly, but otherwise seemed unmoved by his Professor's, and fellow Death Eater's, words. Snape seemed satisfied with Draco's reaction, and strolled out the hospital wing, his cape billowing behind him like black waves.

Draco's hair was unbelievingly messy, but his eyes were light, hopeful even. His body did ache, but not in a necessarily painful way. It was more like the pain you have after exercising your muscles all day long.

"I can't believe him!" Madam Pomfrey cried, looking over at Draco, "He expects you to be out and about, attending classes, in a few days! You're barely awake now!"

"I feel fine," Draco said casually, trying to shrug off everything that had happened to him, "Really. I think I could attend class now, actually."

Lindsey and Pansy's eyes widened, both worried about Draco's well-being, physically and emotionally. Poppy had an absolutely stunned expression on her face.

"No! You are _not_ attending class now, and it would do you well to sleep a few more days. You've lost a lot of weight, and you need me to help fatten you up. For heaven's sake, you're skin and bones!" she cried, throwing her hands up into the air.

Draco shrugged casually, and spun his body around as if he were going to stand up. Indeed, a moment later, that's exactly what he did. Lindsey stood up as well, ready to help him if necessary, but he simply looked around the hospital wing. Poppy, her jaw dropped, gasped, as Draco took a few steps forward.

"Draco!" Pansy shrieked, hastily standing up, nearly causing her stool to topple over.

"What?" Draco asked, turning back to the worried circle, "I feel perfectly fine!"

Malinda was leaning against the headboard, her eyes shocked, and yet blank, as Draco stood across the room from her.

"You need rest, Mister Malfoy!" Madam Pomfrey stated anxiously, rushing over to Draco. He, however, had pulled his wand out on her. Lindsey and Pansy stared, unspeakingly, shocked at Draco's response.

"You…you wouldn't…" Poppy whispered, her own wand lying forgotten on her desk.

"Try me," Draco taunted, shooting a quick glance at Lindsey (or maybe it was Pansy, it was hard to tell, they were both standing unusually close to each other).

Poppy lifted her hands up, a sign of surrender, and inched backwards wearily. Draco didn't lower his wand, but a glassy, thoughtful look was etched across his face.

Memories, horrid memories, of everything that had happened to him, to his father, drifted across his mind. Faded memories of his nightmares were closing in on him, consuming his mind once again into an endless darkness.

Cautiously, unsure of what was happening, Lindsey stepped forward. When she was sure than Draco wasn't going to attack her, she slowly slipped her hand onto his wand arm, pulling it downwards slowly, away from Madam Pomfrey.

"Draco?" she called once Draco's wand was pointing towards the floor, "What's wrong?"

"No…" Draco stated, his voice wavering. Pansy and Malinda hadn't plucked up the nerve to do anything more than gape. Poppy was still backing away, eyeing her forgotten wand that was on her desk with a sudden desperation.

"Draco?" Lindsey repeated, trying to break through whatever thoughts Draco was consumed in.

"No…"Draco replied again, dropping his wand. A loud _ftink-ting_ noise followed the dropped wand as it reached the presence of the cold, marble floor. Madam Pomfrey, finally removing her eyes from Draco, rushed to get her own wand from her desk.

Everything seemed to happen in fast-forward from that moment. As Poppy went to fetch her wand, Draco collapsed, only to be caught by Lindsey's alarmed arms. Pansy finally shifted, and knelt down next to Draco, murmuring his name under her breath. Malinda stood up, staring at Draco with a bewildered expression plastered across her face.

The merciless darkness was swelling up in Draco's body, slowly consuming him once again. His head suddenly felt very heavy, and on his left forearm, he felt the painful sear of the Dark Mark.

Lindsey wasn't sure what was wrong with Draco, whether it was his Mark or simply the fact that his body hadn't recovered. Regardless, she placed her hand on his Mark, which was indeed, slithering back and forth.

"Draco…Draco…" Pansy constantly murmured, trying to be of some use to him. She swept her hand through his hair, letting Draco's head fall against her shoulder. A moment later, Poppy was kneeling next to Draco, muttering a few words under her breath.

Although Madam Pomfrey's wand was illuminated at the tip (which was a sign that she was healing him), Draco continued to moan in pain. His Mark was burning unbearably, not even Lindsey's cool touch was able to relieve it. He could feel Pansy's cold breath on his face, probably muttering some worthless words of comfort to him. Little, multi-colored shapes were beginning to pop up in his vision as Draco desperately tried to hang on to his sanity.

"Draco," Lindsey called, shattering the soundless wall that surrounded Draco's mind. Feeling determined, Draco fought to regain control of his mind and body. Slowly, the stars faded away, and the feeling in his body became more real.

"Draco, you're safe now," Lindsey whispered. Pansy's voice was in the background, still nothing more than an annoying buzzing noise.

Draco tried to say the words 'I know,' but in his condition, it sounded like, "Eh… kn…"

"Shhh," Lindsey cooed, placing her free hand around his waist. Pansy didn't seem to be concerned about this, as she continued blowing her words into Draco's face. He felt himself being pulled upwards and onto the bed, but didn't pay any attention as he was slowly awakening his senses.

After a few short moments, Draco had recovered almost completely. Cautiously, he opened his eyes a fraction of an inch. Pansy appeared to have shut up, as her mouth was no longer moving, and Draco could feel Lindsey cold hand on his mark.

"Draco?" Poppy's voice entered Draco's ears. They must have noticed his minute eye movement.

Carefully, he opened his eyes completely, despite the rushing dizziness of colors that came flooding into view.

"Are you okay?" Pansy cooed, her voice breaking at the end out of worry. Draco nodded, and although it hurt, he sat up. In the same instant, he felt three pairs of hands reach out to his body to push him back down.

"No," Draco said firmly, causing everyone to pause, "I'm fine."

"Mister Malfoy, you are absolutely _not_ fine!" Poppy exclaimed, a stressed kind of harshness in her words.

"I'm fine. Really. It's…It's just the Mark," explained Draco, his voice suddenly much softer than he had intended it to be. Trying to cover it up with a cough, he continued, "It just…took me by surprise. I can handle it now."

Lindsey, Pansy, and Madam Pomfrey all exchanged a fretful look, but Lindsey nodded in agreement.

"Okay, so you're okay," she said, a weak smile on her face, "Now what?" Draco paused for a second before responding lightly.

"I could give you a tour of the castle, if you'd like," Draco said. Lindsey gave him a smile, but Poppy frowned.

"No. You are not to be out of bed," she hassled. Draco rolled his eyes, trying to reassure them that he was in fair health.

"I'm fine. Really. Just the Mark."

"No. You are staying in bed."

"I'm fine!" Draco whined, suddenly sounding much like his old self. Lindsey couldn't help but smile to herself, while Pansy simply stared at Draco.

Madam Pomfrey seemed to loose her patience, and threw her hands up in the air.

"Fine, you go do whatever it is you want. Just know that I tried to help you. So don't you dare complain when you collapse again!" she shouted angrily, walking away from the bed. Draco didn't say anything, but looked down at the marble floor below his feet.

"Not everyone knows you're here Draco," Pansy said after a few awkward moments, "I don't know if it's a good idea to be wandering the castle right now."

"I don't give a damn what they think right now, Pansy," Draco stated matter-of-factly. Pansy's face went slightly pink, but didn't argue with him further.

"She's probably right, for once," Lindsey said, looking a bit gloomy, "The fact that you're here is gossip by itself. They won't be very happy to find out that there are two muggles with you too."

He didn't have anything to say to that, but Draco wasn't going to give up on the chance to get out of the depressing hospital wing.

"Are _you_ afraid of them?" Draco asked, still staring at the floor.

"No," Lindsey said simply.

"Then you shouldn't be worried," he replied.

"I'm not. I'm just saying, I don't want it to bother you, Draco."

"As I said, I don't give a damn about them right now."

"And I don't either."

"Then why don't we go?"

"I'm waiting on you," Lindsey said, causing Draco to smirk.

"Well, I'm ready," he said, standing up; Lindsey followed his example. Pansy remained seated, staring up at Draco with wide, shaken eyes. Malinda was sitting on her bed, watching Lindsey and Draco with a bemused expression.

"You can come too…" Draco said. Malinda considered but shook her head, wanting to give Draco and her daughter some privacy. Lindsey could sense Malinda's reasoning, and gave her a sheepish smile before looking back at Draco.

"It'll be even more interesting if you're going to be wearing a hospital outfit," Lindsey said, giving a quick glance at Draco's light green shirt and pants. This caused Draco to look down, and he became slightly embarrassed that he hadn't caught that fact himself.

"Right," Draco said, eyeing his old clothes wearily.

"They were washed," Pansy whispered, staring at the bed Draco had been sitting in moments earlier. Draco nodded, grabbing them from the nightstand.

Lindsey watched, amused, as Draco threw on his black jacket and cloak. He exchanged a quick glance with Lindsey, before heading out into the corridor, for the first time (conscious at least) in months.

* * *

**Another chapter, written in about two days. ^^ I just got back from Silverwood, which is why it took me so long. Anyhow, please review, it means a lot! :D Thank you, as always, to Hyruleepona, yugiohx5dsgrl, and steff. It makes me happy to see your guys' reviews! ^-^**


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